Mr Peabody: His Ruff Start Of Life
by NatsJungle2000
Summary: Mr. Peabody had a rough start of life. His birth parents did not want him cuz he was the defective runt of the litter. Similar to Sherman. New parents adopted him as one of their own, but all the other pups always bullied him for his differences and size. His only true friend was his adoptive sister, Chloe. When tragedy strikes, he is forced to leave her, probably forever.
1. The Characters

**Mr. Peabody's Family**

 **Adoptive Family:**

 **Father: Maximus**

 **Mother: Daisy**

 **Brothers:  
Rocky  
Connor  
Cocoa**

 **Sisters:  
Chloe  
Olivia  
Sadie**

 **Birth Family:**

 **Father: Ethan**

 **Mother: Mary**

 **Brothers:  
Buster  
Owen  
Gavin**

 **Sisters:  
Audrey  
Layla**

 **Grandfather: Sebastian**

 **Grandmother: Charlotte**

 **Other Notable Animals**

 **Other Beagles:**

 **Deputy - male; best friend of Maximus**

 **Ranger - male; friend of Maximus; best friend of Tracker**

 **Tracker - male; friend of Maximus; best friend of Ranger**

 **Ginger - female; friend of Daisy**

 **Zoey - female; friend of Daisy**

 **Other:**

 **Hugo - male blue and golden macaw**

 **Nick - male sulphur-crested cockatoo**

 **Champ - bay colored, black-haired male quarter horse**

 **Starlight - white colored, black-haired female quarter horse**

 **Rainstorm - dapple gray colored male quarter horse**

 **Bella - tortoiseshell long-haired female cat**

 **Bandit - orange tabby short-haired male cat**

 **Misty - blue-gray short-haired female cat**

 **Bear - solid black long-haired male cat**


	2. The Ruff Beginning

"Mr. Anderson, Mr. Anderson!", a worker man was calling to Mr. Anderson. "Mary is having her puppies!"

Mr. Anderson, excited, comes running into Mary's kennel to check on Mary. Mr. Anderson was the owner of Beagle Haven, an enormous breeding facility and a sanctuary for rescued beagles. Tonight, puppies were being born, new additions to this farm. Mr. Anderson steps into the kennel, and sees Mary licking 2 puppies clean.

"Well, well, look at that," Mr. Anderson chuckled, "they are adorable little additions to our family. They will fit right in."

"I thought these puppies would never get here. Ethan and Mary are our two biggest beagles. Their puppies certainly are all going to be big puppies. Mary sure will be happy to let go of that weight!", added joyfully a woman worker who was helping Mary.

"I better go and report this. I'll go get the paperwork and supplies.", Mr. Anderson suggested. Mr. Anderson walked out of the room, and headed off to his office on the other side of the farm. He always kept good records and stats of new puppies, with checking their health and conditions. He reached his office, and began to pack up a few supplies on a cart to check the puppies' weight, size, temperature, breathing, and other health stats. He packed a few checkboards with plenty of charts and tables to record on. The dogs' nurses would be there to help. He opens the door, and goes the long way on the sidewalk path. He eventually reaches the kennels again, but before he reaches to the end of the hall, worried workers come racing up to him.

"Mr. Anderson! We have bad news!", a worker man exclaimed to Mr. Anderson as he joined up to him.

"What is wrong, what has happened?", Mr. Anderson replied, beginning to worry about what they were about to say. He saw that in another worker's hand, they carried a puppy.

The worker that was carrying the puppy came up to Mr. Anderson, and showed the puppy to him. Mr. Anderson's eyes widened in shock. The puppy he was holding was very tiny. The puppy was so small, that the worker could place 3 more copies of it with it on one hand. It was laying on a washcloth, and was softly crying.

"That puppy sure is small. It must be a runt.", explained Mr. Anderson.

"Mary rejected it, Mr. Anderson. The mother is not going to take care of it.", the worker carrying it sadly replied.

"It has a few issues. Not only is it small, but I think it might have some weak bones. And it also appears to be one of those rarer fully white beagles. Not an albino, but not a lemon beagle, either, so it might be similar to a genetic defect," sadly added another worker man. "And just look how malnourished it is. I don't think this puppy will make it."

"Are you sure Mary is not doing anything for this puppy?", Mr. Anderson prompted.

"Nothing. She refused to lick it, consume the placenta, or let it suckle," responded another man worker. "Why would Mary do this?"

"Well, the dam probably rejected her puppy because she has several other puppies, all much bigger than this one. She must know something we don't. She must think that this puppy is too defective at birth to be taken care of. She is focusing her attention on the healthy big ones," replied a nurse.

"The dam is not going to feed it or take care of it. And as you can see, this puppy is just weak and malnourished. Who knows what else could be wrong with it?", added another nurse.

"Well then, what are we going to do?", sadly asked Mr. Anderson. "This puppy will probably not survive. If we don't come up with a solution fast, we might have to put it down."

"No, Mr. Anderson. We cannot give up! The poor little puppy can't help being born small and defective!", a woman worker protested. "We have to do something! That is unfair and unjust!"

Mr. Anderson looked at the weak runt puppy, as it continued to cry. Mr. Anderson sighs in grief, suggesting there may be no hope for it.

"Hey, hey, Mr. Anderson!", another worker calls for Mr. Anderson, running down the hallway.

"What is it Caleb, what is going on?", Mr. Anderson prompts.

"It's Daisy. She is having her puppies, too! We have two litters today!", Caleb excitedly exclaimed to everyone.

Murmurs of excitement came from the other people. Mr. Anderson, very happy to know that, thinks for a second. The woman worker adds, taking Mr. Anderson out of his thoughts.

"That's it! Daisy!", she exclaimed happily.

"Oh, Daisy.", Mr. Anderson calmly replied. "No, you don't think that..."

"What if she would take the puppy in as one of her own?", happily exclaimed another worker. "Maximus as well?"

"Well, I suppose it's worth a shot...", replied Mr. Anderson.

"What exactly is going on here?", asked Caleb.

"Mary gave birth to an unhealthy weak runt. And she rejected it.", answered Mr. Anderson.

"Well then, what a perfect idea! We just give the puppy plenty of care, and it will have a new mother, and it can pull through!", suggested Caleb.

"We must try it!", responded the woman worker.

Mr. Anderson looks around at all the now excited people, their eyes filled with hope. He knows this is worth trying. He is just not sure if Daisy would reject it as well, or not. Seeing the terrible condition of the white runt puppy, most likely she would reject it as well, as this is the very kind of puppy that any dam would rather not care for, especially when they have stronger ones.

Mr. Anderson sighs, then looks around again. "Okay. Let's take it to Daisy."

A few of the people stayed to look after Mary and her other puppies, and record their statistics, while others came with Mr. Anderson and Caleb to see Daisy's litter.

They walked into another room, where Daisy was being kept. Maximus was standing next to her kennel demanding to go in. Caleb opened the kennel door, and Maximus leaped right in, licking his mate affectionately. Daisy's litter was very healthy looking, no runts in hers. With great apprehension, Mr. Anderson took the puppy, leaned down over Daisy, and gently laid the runt beside her nose on the blanket. The nearby people held their breath as they waited to see what would happen. Would Daisy viciously attack the runt? What would Maximus do next?

Daisy sniffed the runt carefully. Murmurs of unease came from the nearby people, but Mr. Anderson shushed them to be quiet. After sniffing the puppy for a few brief moments, Daisy began to lick the puppy affectionately, and Maximus sniffed it, and did as well, both with a smile. Murmurs of excitement came from the nearby people, as they and Mr. Anderson all knew that this puppy had a chance now. Mr. Anderson promised the runt that he would never give up on it.

"This puppy just held on fast, held on tight, to his life, clinging to his life from the moment it was born. And look...", Mr. Anderson proudly exclaimed, and picks up the puppy to take a closer look at it. "It is a male. Because he held on tight to his life, I know the absolutely perfect name for him." Mr. Anderson raises his voice. "We will call him Hector."


	3. A Blind Puppy

"We have good news and some bad news, Mr. Anderson," said Randy, a worker man.

"What has happened now?," prompted Mr. Anderson.

"Come with me," suggested Randy.

The two people walked down the sidewalk towards the big barn that breeding beagles usually slept in. It had been a little over a week since the puppies were born. Hector was hardly growing any bigger, but the workers have been giving him nutritional supplements to get him to thrive. The other puppies were growing already, and today the puppies were opening their eyes.

They stepped into the barn, and Mr. Anderson looked around. He gave himself a long sigh of admiration and pride. All around the barn there were big nests of straw and hay. Brown wooden walls were decorated with the pawprints of all the beagles of the farm, including the ones from the past. The barn was 3 to 4 stories high, and the only windows were at the very top towards the ceiling, where they captured warm sunlight that pierced through them, making the straw and hay shine like gold. All around, beagles were trotting around playing, and others were expanding their nests. The barn was about 250 feet long, 100 feet wide. It was huge. There was plenty of room for everybody, and in the middle of the barn was an enormous foot and a half tall medal bowl for the beagles to drink out of. Several toys were scattered around, and beagles were playing tug-of-war.

The two people spotted where Daisy and Maximus sat with their litter, a very large nest. The beagles were all sorts of colors and patterns, some having shorter or longer muzzles, ears, and heads. Maximus was a large, tri-colored beagle, with large circular-shaped ears, a bigger head, hazel-colored eyes, all chestnut-colored with a black saddle, and with a white chest, paws, and tail tip. Daisy was smaller, with long, ribbon-like ears, a shorter head, emerald-colored eyes, with chestnut, black, and white tri-color, but with a white face, white legs, and white waist, with splashes of chestnut around a black back. Maximus and Daisy were laying down and resting.

Randy and Mr. Anderson sat down next to the litter. Mr. Anderson was pleased to see they have opened their eyes.

"I see they have opened their eyes. That is very good news," proudly said Mr. Anderson. Then he made a face of uncertainty. "What's the bad news?"

Randy looked at Mr. Anderson with worry, then looked at the litter suckling. He bent over and carefully picked up Hector, then turned his face towards Mr. Anderson. "Look at Hector."

Mr. Anderson gasped with shock. Hector had opened his eyes as well, but they were so cloudy blue, that his pupils and irises were not even visible. In shock, he said, "I think Hector is completely blind. Looks like he was born with pretty bad cataracts or something."

"It obviously was another one of his defects he was born with, Mr. Anderson," said Randy in worry. "Something only Mary could have detected at the time."

"Certainly. And I thought we had already seen all his issues, already," agreed Mr. Anderson, also with worry. "What's next? He is deaf because he's all white? He has no sense of smell since his nose is so small?"

"No, I believe he hears and smells just fine," replies Randy. "But I do believe as well that he is indeed blind, as if he never really opened his eyes."

Mr. Anderson takes Hector and holds his eyes close to his. "I can't see any eyes behind those clouds," he says.

"Then what are we going to do? Do you think we can fix this?", asked Randy.

"When he gets a little older, we can have a surgery done on him to try and remove those clouds," suggested Mr. Anderson. "But until then, he is staying inside. He is not allowed to go outside. Anything could happen to him. He's blind. He's tiny. Someone or something could just step on him without knowing."

"Right," agrees Randy. "We will keep him inside the barn and house. But for how long?"

"Two weeks, perhaps," suggested Mr. Anderson. "I just don't think it is a good idea when he is this little."

"Hey, Mr. Anderson?", asks Randy.

"What is it?", replies Mr. Anderson.

"If Hector is going to be blind for a while, he probably won't be exposed to what other dogs are doing. It would be difficult for him to learn anything the other dogs are doing," warned Randy.

"Perhaps," agreed Mr. Anderson. "But what would this blind puppy do? Would he really do anything non-dog-like while he's waiting for surgery, enough to make him less interested in learning how to do anything else?"

"That's what I'm trying to ask you," replied Randy. "With him being blind, he will lose some experience on how to act."

"Well, we will just have to hope for the best," suggested Mr. Anderson. Mr. Anderson looked at Maximus, who was staring at him straight in the eyes, as if he could detect that something was definitely wrong, his eyes full of worry. "What do you think, Maximus?", asked Mr. Anderson.

Maximus barks in response. Mr. Anderson chuckles. "I think so too," Mr. Anderson agrees.


	4. An Already Unique Puppy

It had been a few days after the puppies opened their eyes. They all loved to explore and see everything. They loved the outdoors. The grass, the bushes, the flowers, the bright sunshine. However, Hector, the blind runt puppy, was living indoors still. He never yet touched the outside world. Inside the house, Hector did find a way to get around despite being blind. He always used his nose. It didn't take long for Hector to memorize most of the basic house smells. The kitchen always smelled like food. The living room, particularly the furniture, always had fresh human scent. The barn was not only by scent. The barn did smell strongly of fresh dog and straw and hay certainly, but the dogs are always heard in there. Hector knew which nest was his certainly, and even where the windows let in the sunlight.

Hector was trotting through the house, sniffing everything. He walked into the living room, digging his small nose into the soft white carpet. Walking along a cream-colored wall, painted with beagles, he ran into a curtain and twitched. The curtain was decorated with pawprint patterns. Hector went around the curtains, using his tail to tell him when he was past them. Then he stopped when he felt the black cords connected to the television interrupting the carpet. He walked slowly, feeling the cord with a paw as he followed up it, then reached out with his other paw to feel the TV stand so that he does not bump his nose against it. He felt the TV stand, then walked alongside it until he reached the end, then continued past the television. He knew the coffee table was within a few feet from the TV, but he also knew that he can walk underneath it. He walked to the side a few inches to not bump into a leg, and walked underneath the table. Within 2 feet from the coffee table, the sofa was there, and Hector felt with a paw where the sofa was. When he felt it, he took his paw off it, and knew to take several paces to the side to reach the end of the couch. He was thinking which way to go, the left or right direction. He sniffed the air around him, and recognized the faint human fingerprint scent of the piano on the right side. Hector loves the music and sounds. The piano was something he was interested in learning all about. He walked to the right, and felt when the edge of the couch was reached. He remembered to take 50 small steps diagonally to the right to reach the piano bench. He took his 50 small steps, then reached out with his paw to feel one of the bench's front legs. He walked a few more steps towards the middle of the bench, and took 4 steps back. He then positioned his hind legs, and took a swift leap up onto the bench, then took another leap to get on top of the keyboards, and when he landed, he heard the music form from the fall. He sniffed the keyboard, and began to walk across the keyboard to listen to the music. He was so small and lightweight, that he had to put a little muscle into his steps to hear the sounds.

He heard the sound of puppies trotting at the other side of the living room, catching their scent. Chloe, one of Hector's sisters, turned to see him on the piano, and padded up to join him. As she was leaping onto the piano, she made a louder sound landing on the keyboard, since she was obviously bigger and heavier than Hector. She walked over to Hector, and nuzzled him, Hector returning the affection. Hector took in her sweet scent. Chloe's a lemon beagle, splashes of light chestnut on her white coat. She had ribbon-like ears like him. Hector signaled for Chloe to jump up on top of the lid. Chloe and Hector had a special liking to each other, while Hector's other brothers and sisters did not like him much. Hector wanted to show her a trick to playing the piano. Hector knew how many keys there were by their different sounds. He walked towards the middle of the piano, and began to play a few notes. He did it repeatedly to show that he memorized that tune. Chloe yapped excitedly in response. Hector then walked to the lower notes, and played another memorized tune. Chloe felt proud of her brother.

Mr. Anderson, Randy, and a woman worker named Mandy, heard someone playing the piano, and walked into the living room to see who it was.

Mr. Anderson looked at the blind runt playing the piano. He chuckled. "Oh, it's Hector, again," he said with amusement. The people slowly walked over to the piano.

As Hector was still playing, he paused, detecting the presence of the three people. He could recognize Mr. Anderson by his scent and voice well, as Mr. Anderson was "The Master" of the farm. He turned around, and looked into their direction with an adorable inquisitive face, even though he could not see them.

Randy chuckled. "Looks like he is putting on a little show to impress Chloe."

"After plenty of practice with that piano," agreed Mandy.

"Certainly not the first time he played that thing," stated Mr. Anderson.

"Yeah, he has been playing with the keyboard for a few days," agreed Randy.

"Well, just because he is blind, that does not mean that he cannot have his own hobby," stated Mandy.

Hector turned around and went back to playing. He walked back over to the middle, and played the tune again, as if to show the humans that he has been learning.

The three people watched with fascination. Mr. Anderson looked impressed. "Do you think he is playing the piano as a hobby because it doesn't have to require his sight?", asked Mr. Anderson.

"That's a thought, yeah," agreed Mandy.

"But, it just isn't dog-like. This is incredible. People have to train an adult dog hard for them to play a tune like that," stated Randy, as the three were listening to that tune. The tune was 20 seconds long, and when he was done playing that one, he went and continued with the lower notes after that one, playing that next tune. This was shocking all three of them. Chloe was yapping excitedly, as if she was interested as well.

"What else have you seen him doing?", asked Mr. Anderson.

"You haven't noticed?", Randy asked. "Hector has been playing with that drum set in the basement. He has been doing tunes with that as well."

"Oh, really?", Mr. Anderson asked with fascination. "I usually don't go down there, so, I had no idea. Heard somebody playing down there, but didn't think it was that puppy. Thought it was someone messing around downstairs during work hours."

"Who did you think it was?", Randy asked, amused.

"Why didn't you go down there to see who it was and tell him or her to get back to work?", Mandy added, also amused.

"I don't know. I didn't think too much of it, considering I heard it being played at night as well. Figured somebody was on break," Mr. Anderson replied.

"No one has been talking about playing the old drum set, so," Randy added. "I wasn't sure what to think of it, either."

Mr. Anderson nodded in response.

Hector was pacing across the keyboard, playing notes while they were talking. Chloe hopped off, and headed towards the kitchen. Now, Hector was sniffing in the middle of the keyboard, and gently jumped down onto the bench, and then the floor, and took off towards the kitchen as well. The people observed Hector as he sniffed the carpet for what they thought was her fresh scent. They looked at each other questionably, in curious thoughts.

Mr. Anderson finally spoke. "If these type of activities are what Hector calls fun now, I wonder what he'll do if his surgery goes successfully, and gets his sight at last."

"Just the yard itself would probably entertain him for a while," wondered Randy. "But something tells me he is still going to do a lot more than just dig holes and go to the bathroom."

After he said that, all three laughed. Already acting so different from the other dogs while he's blind, what would Hector do with sight?


	5. Sight At Last

"Is he going to be okay?", asked Mr. Anderson.

"He'll be fine. When he wakes up, he should be able to see," answered Dr. Stewart.

It had been several more days, and Mr. Anderson finally decided it was time to take Hector to the veterinarian for his eye surgery. Mr. Anderson, along with Caleb, Randy, and four woman workers, were standing in a vet's exam room, where they were waiting to take Hector back to the farm. Hector had stayed overnight at the vet, and they were all anxious to see how his eye surgery went. Hector was laying on a blanket, asleep on the exam table, as he was still exhausted from the surgery. They were only in there for a few minutes, and the vets told them to let Hector slowly wake up on his own. The vets were assuring the workers that the vicious cataracts and blinding lens were removed successfully, but they would not know about his sight until they saw his eyes open. The vets said that Hector had been asleep the entire time after his surgery the previous day.

"Look," Caleb gasped, seeing that Hector was wiggling, looking as though he was about to finally wake up.

Hector slightly kicked his hind feet, and got up slowly, his belly still laying flat on the blanket, he sniffs the air around him.

Everyone took in a deep breath, and held their breath.

Hector very slowly and carefully opened his eyes.

"Awwww!", everyone all at once exclaimed at the adorable sight.

They saw that Hector's eyes were a green color, looking a lot like his mother's.

"Look at that sweet little face!", a woman worker commented happily.

Hector's eyes quickly widened, and he slowly looked up at Mr. Anderson's face, his eyes filled with wonder. His nose wiggled, and he looked around at everyone else.

Everyone laughed at the incredibly adorable sight. One look at the puppy's expression, Dr. Stewart knew that the puppy could see.

Dr. Stewart chuckled. "He can see. You can tell."

Everyone chuckled in response.

"Okay," said Dr. Stewart, wanting to get the attention of the workers. "Now...listen."

Everyone stopped chuckling.

"So," Dr. Stewart went on, as he picked up a small bottle. "You may need to give him a couple pills over recovery, just to avoid any further issues. Not sure if that might be slightly painful, I mean. But it will take at least 10 days. Come back then, and we can remove the stitches."

"He's been given his first de-worming, so we need to keep that in schedule, and that goes for the other puppies as well," added another vet.

"And he will certainly need to wear an Elizabethan collar through the recovery. Do not want any further injury," added Dr. Stewart.

Randy chuckled. "Do you even have one that small?"

Another vet chuckled. "No. We had to construct one for him from fabrics."

"Okay, here are the pills," Dr. Stewart said, handing the bottle to Mr. Anderson. "Take him outside, but be very careful," Dr. Stewart chuckled.

Mr. Anderson turned towards Hector, looking at him again. He looked into Hector's green eyes, and knew that he would be excited to finally take his first steps into the outside world.

Caleb picked up Hector with his soft cone on, and placed him in a cardboard carrier. They headed off back to the farm with their puppy.

While on the way back, Mr. Anderson looked at Randy sitting next to him, with a look of wonder. "I wonder what Hector is going to do now that he can see."

"We will just have to see," reminded Randy. "But he'll learn much from you, I'm sure," Randy commented to Mr. Anderson. "After all, you are "The Master" to the dogs."

Mr. Anderson nodded in agreement.

 **...**

 **...**

 **...**

Hector was picked up and taken out of his carrier. He looked curiously around the living room, his green eyes full of wonder. He was surprised to see what these objects he had to sniff and feel his way through really looked like.

" _So these are the human things I've been picking my way through_ ," Hector thought. He trotted closer, looking at the piano. " _This must be what I've been playing sounds with._ "

Hector turned and heard the master calling for his father and mother. Hector could not understand humans, but he could recognize most names that they said, such as his own, "Max", his father, and "Daisy", his mother. He was wondering how his parents would react when they saw that he could finally see. He was excited. He heard excited barking coming from his parents.

Maximus and Daisy came trotting through the entrance, and trotted into the living room where Hector stood. Seeing their adopted son with bright green eyes with no clouds, their tails started to wag. They barked in triumph. They heard the voices coming from the humans standing next to them, and they also sounded excited, and were laughing. One of them knelt down and spoke in a proud voice, and stroked Daisy's head. The humans all exited the room, heading outside, still laughing. Maximus and Daisy waited until the humans left.

Maximus and Daisy turned their gaze back towards Hector.

"Well, well, well," Maximus proudly sighed. "Can you see, son?" Maximus had a deep mature voice.

"Yeah, I can see," Hector answered. Hector had the cute-sounding voice of a 3-year old boy human child. "But, I can't see too well, though..."

"What do you mean?", Daisy asked, sounding worried. Daisy had a soft, sweet, gentle-sounding mature voice.

"Well, for the most part, fine," Hector replied. "But a few small objects look a little blurry to me."

Maximus and Daisy looked at each other with uncertain looks.

Hector looked at their exchanged glances, and spoke before they said something else. "Don't worry. I'm fine. Perfectly fine. No need to worry," Hector tried to convince them. "I can see. That's what matters."

Maximus and Daisy looked back at Hector, and thought for a few seconds.

Again before they had the chance to speak, Hector immediately changed the subject. "Can I go outside now? Is the master gonna let me? I have to be free, at last!"

"Yes, I believe that is why the humans were yelping in triumph when they went outside," replied Maximus.

"They must be personally waiting for you to come out," agreed Daisy.

"You think so?", Hector asked.

Both of his parents chuckled. "Yes," they both said at the same time.

"They will certainly be excited to watch your first steps into the outside world," assured Daisy.

"I know you are very excited, but don't say a word until you get into the yard past them," reminded Maximus.

Hector gave a confused look.

"You do remember, right?", asked Maximus. "You should never talk in front of humans."

"Not a good idea," added Daisy.

"Not like they speak our language, anyway," argued Hector.

"They see your mouth moving, they will think something's wrong with you," assured Maximus.

"Just be careful," added Daisy. "Since you can see now, you will know better if they can see your face. Don't let them see you speak."

"Uh...okay...", responded Hector, nervously.

"Come on, son," urged Maximus, excitedly. "The world outside is waiting for you!"

Hector yipped excitedly, and his tail began wagging rapidly. He jumped up in hyper excitement, and raced towards the door that led to the yard, scratching the wooden floor with his tiny claws, and wrinkling the mat in front of the white doggy door.

His parents catch up to him, and Hector suddenly hesitates, nervous about what is on the other side of that door.

"Close your eyes, dear," Daisy whispered.

Maximus and Daisy slowly passed through the doggy door to show Hector that is indeed how to get out.

Hector closed his eyes, and hopped through the door. The flap was a little heavy to his very tiny lightweight body, and gave it a very hard shove. Still with his eyes closed, he leaped out of the flap, and felt the wooden porch under his paws. He took a few steps forward. He could feel the heat of the sun, smell the grass, and feel a simple breeze pick up in the wind.

The nearby humans started to quietly chuckle, watching him with full fascination as they waited for what would happen when Hector first saw the yard. Maximus and Daisy as well. As Hector sniffed the air, he could sense the excitement in everybody. He took several more spaces forward, and felt with his paw a couple stairs, and stopped.

Very slowly and carefully, with determination, excitement, and curiosity racing through him, to reveal the world at last, Hector opened his pair of green eyes.


	6. First Look Into The Outside World

Hector looked at the yard and sunshine, as if he was in a dream.

Hector gasps in wonder. " _Wow_!", he thought.

Still in fascination, he glanced around the yard, seeing the sunlit green grass and dandelions. He heard the sound of interested chuckles coming from the nearby humans, and figured they were in much amusement and pride of his first look at the farm. He looked back towards his parents, and they were chuckling too.

Hector turned his gaze back to the yard, and slowly stepped down the stairs of the porch, and landed on the sidewalk. Not really sure exactly what the grass and dirt is and how it would feel, he kept trotting along the sidewalk, on a path that led to a garden. The sidewalk felt hard on his feet, but he was so happy to feel it.

Maximus and Daisy paced up to him in the grass. Hector paused, looking at the glistening grass.

"What do you think, Hector?", proudly asked Maximus.

"It's so BIG out here!," Hector exclaimed.

In response, Maximus and Daisy both laughed at the cute line.

"Yes, it is big," agreed Daisy. "And it can even be quite scary at times."

Hector sniffed the grass, and slowly stepped foot into the dirt until his whole body was standing on the turf. He gave a sigh of satisfaction. "So this is what the outdoors feels like!", he said excitedly.

Maximus and Daisy both chuckled. "Feel free to take a look around," suggested Maximus.

"There is much to explore around the farm," Daisy added.

"How big is the farm really?", asked Hector.

"It is enormous," replied Maximus.

"But be careful," warned Daisy. "And don't go too far."

"I won't!", Hector promised his parents.

With just a brief moment of hesitation, Hector bounded off into the grass, towards the nearby garden. Hector reached it in no time at his pace. He walked through a gate, and onto a large-stoned trail replacing the sidewalk. The garden was beautiful. There were tomato plants, as well as strawberry plants. Going further into the garden, there were so many magnificent flowers, of all shapes and colors, swaying with the coming breeze. Hector could feel it too, with the sunshine toasting his fur. The grass in the garden was different, very tall, to where Hector has to balance on his hind legs to touch the top.

" _A perfect place for hide and seek_ ," Hector thought.

Just a moment later, he heard something behind him. He cautiously sneaked towards the spot he heard the sound. In the distance, he also heard the sound of a cascade pouring into a nearby pond. Still following the direction of the sound, he reached the pond, and near it, the grass was much shorter. Beside it, a large patch of huge pot marigolds were sitting there. Hector sniffed the air, and caught a whiff of something else besides the garden, but there were so many new smells in the garden, he could not figure out what it was. The marigolds smelled nice, and he walked over to them, sniffing them. He then caught the scent of another nice scent, one sort of familiar. He stopped in his tracks, and sniffed closer to the ground to try and determine what it was he was smelling.

He bent closer, and closer, until suddenly, he felt his nose touch something else. This other something was also a little moist, and it felt kind of weird. Then, whatever it was, it eerily began to move. It startled Hector a little, but he did not jump. He only rose himself slowly, while the object remained touching his nose. Just then, Hector came across looking at a pair of sparkling blue eyes, and the object stood up, taller than him, and a furry face of light chestnut and white rose from the plants. The eyes blinked a couple of times.

Hector, in sudden shock and fright, widened his eyes, opened his jaws slightly, and ran backwards fast through the small grass, then the pond, and without knowing it was right behind him, toppled over and fell behind a rock, making a splash of water as he fell in the pond.

The animal walked out of the tall flowers and grass, and trotted over to the pond in amusement. "Hector, is that you?", it asked.

With his face not seeing the animal, due to his fabric cone around his neck, and his body being flipped over and in the water, he slowed down his shocked breaths. Hector then recognized the voice and sweet scent, and right away knew who it was.

Hector raised a paw and waved it over the rock. "Hi...Chloe...," he greeted, in an embarrassed, uncertain, and nervous tone.

Chloe chuckled in response. "Hector!", she greeted. "I almost didn't recognize you!"

Hector immediately sat up, to see Chloe for the first time. "Really?!", he prompted, excited. "Am I getting bigger?!"

Chloe chuckled again, and walked over to him in the pond, amused at the little outburst he just presented. Chloe had a sweet, gentle, adorable voice, of a 5-year old girl human child. Within seconds she reached him.

"No, silly!", she responded. "Your eyes! You can see now?"

"Yeah, I can see," Hector replied. "A few of the flowers do look somewhat blurry to me though..."

"But you can see?!", Chloe prompted.

"Yes," Hector responded. "But it sure would be easier to see if I did not have to wear this stupid thing around my head," Hector stated, embarrassed, but with a hint of amusement of himself in his voice.

Chloe laughed. "Do you want me to show you around? You just got out here, right?", she asked.

"Yeah!," Hector excitedly agreed.

"Come on, then!", Chloe urged.

The two puppies got up, took a needed drink from the pond, and splashed their way back to the grass, and excitedly bounced alongside each other until they reached the exit to the garden. When they did, they saw Maximus standing there. "Where are you two going in such a hurry?", he asked in an amused voice.

"Hi, dad...", Chloe replied, out of breath in hyper excitement.

"I can see you are happy as well that Hector can see now," Maximus stated.

"Chloe said she's going to give me a tour of the farm right now!", Hector exclaimed excitedly.

"Great idea!", Maximus approved. "But, please, not the entire farm today," he warned. "Chloe, you can show him around here, but, I don't want either of you going far right now."

"Dad didn't tell you a big rule he has?", Chloe asked Hector.

"What rule?", Hector asked Maximus in response to Chloe's concerning question.

"Well, I don't want you going near the woods, Hector," prompted Maximus.

"What woods?", asked Hector.

"That goes for your siblings too," Maximus responded. "Do not want either of you going far. I need to be able to keep an eye on you."

"But what woods? What are you talking about?", Hector asked again.

"You are not to go anywhere near the horse barn," Maximus assured. "They are east of this location, and are where the woods are. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir," both Hector and Chloe promised their father.

"Okay," Maximus approved. "Now go out and have fun. Plenty of other dogs will want to see you, Hector."

"Okay!", Hector excitedly responsed.

"Let's go!", Chloe prompted, and turned and began trotting away towards open grass.

Hector hesitated for a second, and watched Chloe, with a smile. Maximus noticed, and was wondering what was going on.

"What's the matter, Hector?", Maximus asked Hector, amused.

"She sure is pretty," Hector told his father.

Maximus chuckled loudly, overly amused at what Hector just said.

Before he could ask something else, Hector went on. "Connor told me she wasn't bad looking for her age."

Maximus chuckled again. "So he told you she was pretty?"

Hector chuckled. "He did, but he did not tell me that she was THAT pretty!", he exclaimed.

Maximus just could not stop laughing. "Whatever, Hector," he chuckled, and ran off back to the house, still laughing on the way.

Hector sprang up and raced as fast as his small legs could carry him, to where Chloe was standing there waiting for him.

"What were you doing?", she prompted to Hector, when he caught up to her.

Hector, in response, gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Nothing." Before she could act suspicious, he immediately changed the subject. "Let's get going!", he prompted.

"Alright!", she happily remarked to him. "Follow me. We will go this way first."

Chloe pointed her tail forward, and Hector then realized they were standing on top of a hill. The two puppies raced to the end of the hill, and they both halted, and Hector, just like before, like as if he was in a dream world, looked down the hill at an exploration paradise below.


	7. A Tour Through The Farm

Hector looked down the hill at the place below. " _Wow! What a fun-looking paradise_!", Hector thought.

Down below, there were so many beagles playing around, it was impossible to count exactly how many. Several workers were around, playing with the dogs. Other dogs were wrestling and playing tug-of-war with each other. There was a playground. There were giant forts, rock-climbing walls, a giant bounce house, big swings, and it just basically looked like a human playground, but it was specifically designed for dogs to climb and play on. There was also a huge set of pools that the dogs were swimming in. It had giant water slides, fountains, and a big wave pool, with places for small surfing, but it was also just for dogs. All around there was thrilled and hyper barking, yipping, and howling coming from both grown dogs and puppies. There were even a few big radios around the place with music being played with the human language. Surrounding the entire place, was an 8 foot high medal black fence.

Hector took a glance at Chloe, giving her a quick nod and smile of approval, and Chloe did back, and then Chloe trotted down the hill, taking the lead, with Hector fffollowing, trying to keep up with his very short legs.

As Hector was catching up, he saw that a human was standing in front of the gate connected to the fence. "Why is there a human standing there?", Hector asked Chloe. "Is he guarding the place or something?"

"He's gonna let us inside," Chloe replied.

"Is he taking an order from the master?"

"Something like that."

"Are there any rules that the humans try and make us follow?"

"Not too many outside. It's mostly freedom out here."

They reached close to the gate, where the human was standing.

"Why is there a fence surrounding the whole place?", Hector asked. "Is it to keep certain dogs out or in?"

Chloe stopped slowly, and turned back to look at Hector.

"Is that why that human is guarding the gate?", Hector asked.

"You sure ask a lot of questions, don't you?", Chloe commented, amused.

Before Hector could reply, she yipped at the human, to get his attention. The human turned to look at them.

Both puppies walked over to the human, the human watching them with a smile on his face. Chloe went to the gate, and began pawing at it, while looking at the human so he knows they want in.

Hector went and stood next to Chloe, and they both stared at the human. The human walked over to them, and returned the look. Hector and Chloe then heard the human speaking to them, in a demeaning-sounding voice.

Both of the puppies looked at each other questionably, then back at the human, who was still speaking. Hector then curiously watched the human take a small shiny jingling object and inject it into a hole on the gate, turn it, and pull the gate open, as Hector and Chloe backed up and gave him some space to do it.

Both puppies then darted inside. After a few moments, they both stopped, and turned around and watched the human close the gate back up, while he seemed to be talking to himself.

"I can't understand anything he's saying," Hector stated.

"No dog gets what humans are saying," Chloe agreed. "But a few do take to a few sounds they make."

"And that acts as a set of any rules, right?", Hector asked.

Chloe turned and looked at Hector. "Trust me, Hector. You will know everything in no time."

Hector turned and looked at Chloe. Hector felt that he should stop asking so many questions and just wait for Chloe to tell him.

Chloe whipped around, and began trotting towards a wave pool. Hector followed. When they both reached the edge of the pool, they looked at the dogs swimming in it. They all had unique colors and patterns. Nearby humans were yelping excitedly at the dogs, and throwing balls into the pool for them to play with. Hector looked curiously at the dogs carrying the green fuzzy balls in their jaws in the water. He figured it must have been some sort of game.

Hector noticed that beneath his paws was a tile-like floor, like he was indoors. He felt the slippery hard tiles with his tiny claws.

Before Hector could ask it, Chloe answered his question. "I think the humans keep this floor here near the pools instead to keep the grass and dirt from being kicked into the pool, getting it too filthy."

Hector noticed how the water in the pools were a different color and appearance then the pond in the garden. It was a more fluorescent looking blue, and had a very unique smell to it.

"This water looks and smells pretty weird, not like other water," Hector commented.

"Try not to swallow it, Hector," Chloe responded. "It can make you choke if you do."

"If dogs are swimming in it...", Hector started.

"Yes, it is safe," Chloe assured. "It just does weird things."

"Like what?", Hector asked, starting to get concerned.

"It might sting your eyes a little sometimes," Chloe answered. "And you'd better be careful," Chloe warned. "I heard the water can change white fur into a different color if exposed too long." Chloe took a look at Hector's eyes. "And to answer your 'rule' question, you probably shouldn't swim in there when you have those incisions near your eyes. If a human catches you swimming, it might force you out."

Just then, two adult dogs came splashing and running out of the pool, laughing, both with a ball in their jaws, getting Hector and Chloe a little wet. Hector shook the water off himself.

"Fun though, right?", Chloe responded, shaking the water off of herself, too.

"You know," Hector replies, "it would be hard for me to swim anyway because of this collar."

Chloe looked at Hector's collar. "Yeah, you're probably right." She immediately changed the subject, though. "I gotta show you everything else first, anyway," she said excitedly. "Come on!"

Both puppies walked beside the pool. Hector watched the dogs slide down a huge flat steep water slide on the other side. It sure looked like fun. After a minute, Hector heard a loud alarm. Chloe heard it too.

"That alarm announces when the waves start in this big pool," Chloe informed.

Hector looked at the water, and saw waves forming in the pool, and heard the dogs shouting "Waves! Waves!"

Hector then turned and continued following Chloe, who kept walking. They then walked past another big pool, one where several water slides had dogs popping out and being thrown into the water, making big splashes. It looked even more fun, but Hector knew that the humans would probably want to keep him out of the pools because of his current condition. Hector was noticing that a few humans were observing where he was going. He wondered for a moment if that was what the guard human at the gate was saying to him.

They trotted past the pools, and reached the nearby big playground. There was grass and dirt around this area, and dogs were rubbing against the earth.

Hector paced into the grass with Chloe. Hector buried his nose into the grass and dirt. "They sure smell delightful, don't they?", Hector asked.

Chloe sniffed the earth too. "It sure does," Chloe agreed. "But it smells much better, more fresh, more delicious, in the early morning," she added.

"Really?", Hector asked.

"Yeah," Chloe answered. "Fresh morning dew is good stuff."

Hector felt something tickle his nose as he was sniffing. It startled him, and he shook a little.

Chloe took notice. "What?", she asked.

"What's this?", Hector asked her.

Chloe looked closer at the spot, and saw a small insect crawling on a leaf. "Hector, that's just a beetle."

Hector looked closer. "An insect?", he asked.

"Yes, it's harmless," Chloe replied. "You didn't see it?"

Hector leans in closer, and squints his eyes. He notices a small blurry dot moving, but can't recognize it as an insect.

"I barely see anything, Chloe," Hector remarked.

"Hmm...", Chloe sighed with wonder.

Hector and Chloe both sat up, neither thinking anything of it. They both looked towards the playground.

"You want to try climbing on top of the fort?", Chloe asked excitedly.

"Yeah!", Hector happily replied.

Both puppies ran off towards the fort, and stopped in front of a staircase. They both climbed up it. Chloe had no trouble, but Hector, being so tiny, and having the cone around his head, had to put a little more effort into it. He put some muscle into lifting, but, his legs were not that strong, and he fell down the edge of the first step. Chloe, nearly all the way up already, looked back and saw Hector struggling.

"You need some help?", Chloe asked.

Hector took a few spaces back, and as he did with the piano bench, he leaped up onto the first step. He then did for the next and the next until he was on the top of the staircase with Chloe.

There were two other puppies on top of the fort, and Hector and Chloe recognized their brothers, Rocky and Connor. Both had the voice of a 6 or 7 year old boy human child. They were both chewing on a squeaky toy, and noticed Hector and Chloe's presence.

"What are you doing here, Chloe?", asked Rocky. Rocky was a blue-ticked beagle. He stopped chewing his toy.

Connor stopped chewing his toy as well, and looked at Hector, with wonder. "Hector?", he asked. Connor was a tri-colored beagle.

"It's me," Hector replied, proudly.

Rocky and Connor both looked at the fabric cone around Hector's neck, amused. "Hah! And what is that around your neck?", Rocky teased.

"It's something the vet put on me," Hector replied nervously.

Rocky and Connor both laughed.

"Do you know how stupid you look with that thing on?", Rocky teased again.

"Seriously, Hector," added Connor. "Surely there could have been another alternative to THAT?!"

"Hey!", Chloe responded assertively. Rocky and Connor both stopped laughing. "How would you feel if YOU had to wear this?"

Hector only sighs, embarrassed, in addition.

"Chloe, chill," Connor persuaded Chloe. He changes the subject. "You showing Hector around for the first time?", he asked Chloe.

"Yes...", Hector responded slowly. "She...is."

"Well, go somewhere else to do that, then," Rocky grumbled. "We don't want to be caught socializing with the pup in that cone of shame."

Rocky and Connor both chuckle with full amusement. Hector only sighs in embarrassment.

"C'mon, let's go.", Chloe urges Hector. "We don't need them with us."

Hector nods in approval, and both puppies walk past their brothers, who went back to chewing their squeaky toys.

Hector and Chloe trot off farther through the fort, and brush past two adult dogs wrestling each other. They come across another set of stairs, narrower in size, but 6 feet up.

"I think that's a high slide there," Chloe remarked. "Do you want to go up there and slide down it?"

"Sure!", Hector happily agreed. He trotted past Chloe, and leaped up the stairs as fast as he could, Chloe following behind.

They reached the top, and looked down. The slide was plastic and white-colored. It was steep, open, and 25 feet high. It was wide enough for both of them to slide down at once.

"You ready?", Chloe asked Hector.

"Yeah!", Hector quickly replied. "Let's go at the same time!"

Both puppies positioned themselves. Chloe was going frontwards, while Hector chose to go backwards.

"Three," Chloe started the countdown to the drop.

"Two," Hector added.

"ONE!", they both excitedly yelped at the same time.

They let go, and yelped happily as they slid down very fast. When they reached the bottom of the slide, and into the grass, they both tumbled over each other. They finished in a position where Hector landed on top of Chloe's back, then he slid off after a few seconds, laying on his back.

They looked at each other, and started laughing together.

"That was fun!", Hector excitedly yelped.

"Yeah!", Chloe laughed.

They continued laughing loudly for several moments.

"Hey, who's making all that racket?!"

"What's going on?!"

"Someone here won't shut up!"

Angered voices, sounding like 12 year old boy human children, came coming close. Both Hector and Chloe were startled, and immediately stopped laughing. Chloe jumped up and stood still in fright, while Hector jumped, and landed in a laying-down position, and put his head down flat on the ground, and shut his eyes and kept them closed as he heard heavy pawsteps approaching him.

"Hey!", an angered voice sounded from right above him. Hector then recognized the voice, and froze in fright.

He opened his eyes, and saw two paws right in front of him. Hector gulped nervously, and slowly, in fright, looked up, raising his head a little. A sinister-looking face with dark brown eyes was there. The pair of eyes stared down at him, and blinked slowly.

Hector gulped again. "Buster...?", he asked very apprehensively, in a weak tone.

Buster chuckled. "Well, well, well, guys," Buster asked the other two puppies surrounding him. "Who do we have here?", Buster asked sarcastically. Buster and the two surrounding puppies were all darker-shaded in their different colors and patterns, and were quite large for their age.

Chloe gasped. Hector muttered nervously.

"If it isn't our LITTLE BROTHER?!", Buster teased. The two other puppies laughed teasingly in response, and Hector recognized these three of his brothers. The other two were Owen and Gavin.

"Uh...", Hector muttered.

Buster looked in mean amusement at Hector's fabric cone around his head. "So, let me guess," he teased. "You were so excited about gaining your sight, you immediately chose satellite over cable?" All three laughed very hard and harshly after he said that.

"You certainly wanted yourself to stand out real good!", Owen added, as they were still laughing in the bullying manner.

Hector felt very hot with embarrassment and humiliation. Chloe could not bare to see her brother treated this way, especially on such a supposed-to-be happy day for him.

"Stop it, you guys!", Chloe yelped angrily. "Your brother got his sight! Are you not happy for him?!"

"Why do you care so much?!", Gavin exclaimed to Chloe.

Chloe growled angrily at them. Buster growled angrily back.

"Come on," Buster ordered Owen and Gavin. "Let's go. We don't need the trouble from Runt!"

"Yeah, we've got better things to do right now, Runt!", Owen added.

"Let's get outta here!", Gavin added.

The three bullies ran off towards the direction of the wave pool, not looking back.

Chloe gave a snort of disgust, and looked back at Hector. Hector only gave a sigh of humiliation.

"Hey, I haven't shown you a few places outside THIS area yet," remarked Chloe. "Let's head out!"

Pushing his embarrassed feelings aside, he nodded in agreement, and they trotted off, Chloe leading the way. Chloe led to the other side of the area, to another gate, with a different human standing there. The human took notice, and Chloe yipped at her to tell her they wanted out. Hector and Chloe noticed that this human talked in a demeaning sounding voice to them, just like the other did. Confused, they headed out the gate when it was opened by the human. Chloe, still in the lead, was taking Hector somewhere else. Hector noticed they were walking towards a dark-black-colored ground. They walked up to it and paused.

Hector sniffed the black ground, and let out a yelp of disgust. "YUCK!", he exclaimed. "This ground REEKS!"

Chloe sniffed it too. "Yeah, I know," Chloe agreed in disgust. "I don't get why the humans like to walk on it."

Hector looked across the black ground, and noticed there were enormous beings laying on it. He examined them, seeing they have two eyes, each with 2 pupils, a very shiny smooth naked pelt, holes on the side of their bodies, 2 small ears, and huge sphere-shaped black paws.

"What are those things?", Hector asked, with slight concern.

"Monsters," Chloe answered. "Humans ride them to go to far-away places."

"Why are they called 'monsters'?", Hector asked, sounding more worried.

"Humans physically go inside their belly to ride them," Chloe answered. "And on the outside, they can be very dangerous."

"How dangerous? What can they do?"

"Horrible things, if they are not controlled carefully."

"Do they attack us or something?"

"Don't worry. They don't wake up until the humans come to wake them up."

"Oh."

"Didn't you already see these things when you were coming back from the vet?"

"I was in a completely dark carrier with very small holes. I saw nothing."

"Right," Chloe responded. "Well, let me show you over there," Chloe instructed, pointing her tail a different direction. "There is a second place where dogs live."

They headed off towards the direction. As Hector was following Chloe, he took a glance back at the monsters, wondering what they could do to a dog. Shaking off the feeling, he looked ahead, and saw they were approaching another fence, and he heard the barking of lots of dogs playing. They paused and sat in front of the fence. Behind it was a large yard, and a house with it. Hector looked at the dogs playing with some humans and with each other.

"So," Chloe began. "This area is where the rescued dogs are kept."

"Rescued?", Hector asked.

"Yes. These dogs were either rescued from a bad situation and brought here for shelter and care, or they were unwanted strays wandering around looking for a home."

"Oh," Hector responded with great interest. "So some of these dogs are sick or injured, right?"

"Yeah. Not all of them, but the ones that are have already been taken to the vet, and they live here while they recover."

"Hmm."

"So, remember that question you asked, regarding the humans guarding the gates?"

"Yeah."

"Well, what goes on is that, there are two groups of dogs on the farm. Us, obviously, and then, these dogs. The two groups of dogs take turns entering the playing areas and such."

"Why can't they just play with us? Surely that would be easier for not only the dogs, but the humans, too."

"Well, the point of this even taller fence around this area is to keep the two groups separated from each other."

"Are we forbidden to talk to them, or what?"

"No, not really. I have talked to them once or twice."

"Then what's really different about them? I am in recovery, too, aren't I? It would explain why I have this cone around me."

"Well..." Chloe sighs. "There are names that dogs often give the two groups."

"What are they?"

"We call dogs like ourselves who sleep in that barn 'uncut dogs', and these dogs here, most often are 'cut dogs'."

"Cut?", Hector asked, sounding slightly concerned. "Being a 'cut dog' sounds like a bad thing."

"Oh, it really isn't," Chloe assured. "We call them 'cut dogs', because what other puppies have told me is that these dogs are claimed to have been taken to a specific type of vet that we call 'the cutter'."

"The cutter? That still sounds bad. Do they really 'cut' the dogs?"

"I'm not sure how literal it is. It might just be an exaggerated, informal term. But I seriously have no idea what 'the cutter' really does. Nobody will tell me."

"What do you mean 'nobody will tell you'?"

"I asked several adult dogs what 'the cutter' actually does to dogs, but they kept telling me they won't tell me."

"Well, what do you know about 'cut dogs'?"

"Older puppies told me that 'cut dogs', after they come back from 'the cutter' and become 'cut dogs', act somewhat different from other dogs. There are a few behaviors that 'uncut dogs' will do, but 'cut dogs' will not do."

"Oh."

"And for some 'cut dogs', if they do not get a proper amount of exercise, and/or eat too much, they easily become very fat and lazy."

"Really?"

"Yeah. So basically, the definition of a 'cut dog', from what I know so far, is a dog that was once hyper and overly energetic all the time, but becomes almost completely tranquil and lazy."

"So, 'the cutter', CHANGES a dog?"

"Pretty much."

"But I still don't get it. Why can't they just play with us?" Hector watched the 'cut dogs' playing ball with the nearby humans. "I mean, look at them. They look like mostly normal dogs to me."

"I don't know," Chloe explained. "Mom and Dad told me that 'cut dogs' and 'uncut dogs' are not allowed to interact with each other. And by the way, if you smell a 'cut dog', they do smell quite different then 'uncut dogs'."

"Hmm. Interesting," Hector responded. "Are we going to get 'cut' someday?"

"The humans decide on that, Hector."

"That is just so weird," Hector stated.

"I know," Chloe agreed. "You are a hyper dog now. The humans take you to 'the cutter', and you fall asleep, only to wake up feeling completely different."

"Well, I think you should show me something else, now," Hector suggested.

"Okay!", Chloe quickly agreed. "Let's head back!"

"Let's go!", Hector urged.

Both puppies took off, racing alongside the tall fence holding in the rescue dogs. Hector kept looking at the dogs in the yard, and then something stopped him in his tracks. "Whoa, whoa, wait a second!", Hector exclaimed, at the sight.

Chloe paused, and went back to him. "What's the matter?"

Hector pointed with his tail towards a group of rescue dogs. Chloe looked in the direction he was pointing. In that group, there were two dogs standing there talking to the other dogs, and they both had only 3 legs.

Chloe quickly assumed what dogs Hector was staring at. "Are you looking at the dogs who are missing a limb?"

"Yes!", Hector exclaimed. "What happened to them?!"

"You know," Chloe remembered. "I did actually talk to those two dogs. Do you really want to know what happened to them?"

"What happened to them?", Hector ordered.

"Well," Chloe sighed with pity. "One of them lost a leg to a monster."

" _A monster_?!", Hector thought. "A monster?", he asked Chloe, in complete shock. "You mean one of those big sleeping things we just saw, that you said could do horrible things?"

"Yeah. He told me that a monster attacked him in a rage with one of his giant black paws, and his leg was so badly injured from the assault, that a vet just removed it."

"Oooh...", Hector muttered, thinking about how painful that probably was. "What...what about the other one?"

"She told me that she got struck in the leg with a 'thunderstick'."

"A 'thunderstick'?", Hector asked with shock. "What is that?"

"We dogs don't really know what they are. That is what we call them though, because they are big heavy sticks that humans carry around that make extremely loud sounds like thunder when they are triggered. They are said to cause serious injury, and are extremely dangerous. Often fatal. Luckily for her, however, it was only her leg, and not in a fatal spot."

Hector gave an uncomfortable mumble. He wondered what it would feel like to get struck by a 'thunderstick'. "We just need to avoid them always, right?"

"If you see an unknown human holding a 'thunderstick', run away. Any bad thing can happen around them."

Hector felt scared for the moment, but then Chloe insisted to keep heading back. "Well, anyway," Chloe suggested, "how about we head back now?"

"Okay...", Hector agreed, wanting to shake off his thoughts. "Let's keep going."

Chloe led the way back to the house. They stood next to the garden's fence, and the sidewalk Hector had walked on earlier.

Chloe pointed with her tail towards another open place of grass. It was on the opposite side and direction of the garden. "So, you see that place right there, opposite of the way to the garden?"

"Yeah," Hector answered.

"Well," Chloe explained, with amusement, "that is the main dirt place, because it is close to the barn."

"Oh...", Hector replied with disgust. "You mean that's where dogs make dirt?"

"Usually...", Chloe replied, with a mix of disgust and amusement. "So you probably should be notified of that," she laughed.

Hector was a little grossed out, and wanted to again change the subject quickly. "Hey, I haven't even seen the inside of the barn where we sleep yet! I want to go see!"

Chloe led the way alongside the house past the dirt place, and they reached the barn. They stood in front of the open door, and walked inside.

Hector felt the scratchy straw and hay beneath his paws. "So this is what it looks like."

They paced over the hay, walking past a few other dogs. They were approaching a familiar looking nest.

Hector examined it. "That there is our nest, right?", he asked Chloe.

"Yep," Chloe answered.

They stepped closer to it, and saw someone sleeping inside of it. When they reached the nest, they recognized their sisters, both tri-colored.

"Olivia?", Chloe asked.

"Sadie?", Hector added.

The two sisters were napping and snuggling on top of each other in the nest. Upon hearing the voices, they opened their eyes. When they noticed Hector, their eyes opened all the way.

"Hector?", Olivia asked.

"Is that you?", Sadie added.

"Yep, and he can see now!," Chloe exclaimed proudly.

"Oh," Sadie and Olivia both said in an interested tone.

"Are you happy for me?", Hector asked excitedly.

"Yes, congratulations," Sadie said.

"We're happy for you," Olivia added.

"Why are you two sleeping on such a nice day?", Hector asked.

"Girls sometimes need their beauty sleep," Chloe answered for them, amused. She chuckled.

"Yes," Sadie agreed.

"Well, now that you got us up," Olivia added, "we might as well go get a drink."

Both sisters got up, and walked off towards the large water bowl in the middle of the barn.

"So, you've seen a lot of the farm, now," Chloe told Hector. "What else do you wanna do?"

"I wanna go see my grandma and grandpa. I'm sure they will be delighted to know I can now see."

"They're probably laying around somewhere outside," Chloe suggested. "You know, you can walk on top of the barn. They might be there." She pointed with her tail towards a staircase on the other side of the barn.

"Cool!", Hector exclaimed, looking at the staircase. "I'll see you later then, Chloe."

"See ya!", Chloe replied, running off back outside.

Hector took a much needed drink from the water bowl in the middle of the barn, and then headed on up the staircase. When he reached the top, he saw that on top of the barn was a small garden with a fence surrounding the edges of the roof. And he trotted through the garden, on a stoned path just like the one in the garden below, and he eventually saw two dogs sitting next to the fence, looking out into the distance. He recognized their scent, and knew it was them.

"Sebastian! Charlotte!", Hector exclaimed.

The dogs twitched their ears at that sound, and turned to see Hector running up to them. They both were tri-colored, their face turning white with age.

"Is this the little grandson of ours we are looking at?", Charlotte asked, amused.

"No," Sebastian replied, also amused. "It couldn't be!"

"Yeah, it's me!", Hector excitedly responded, jumping up and down.

Sebastian and Charlotte both laughed at their adorable grandson.

"So, this is your first day outside?", Sebastian asked.

"You just got your sight today?", Charlotte added.

"Yeah!", Hector replied. "But, everyone keeps saying I look stupid wearing this cone," he added in an embarrassed tone.

"Well, if you want sight, you'll have to wear it," Sebastian assured.

"Why do I have to wear this anyway?", Hector complained.

"They probably don't want you touching or messing with your incisions near your eyes," Sebastian answered.

"You've had to wear these before, haven't you?", Hector asked both dogs. "How long until it can be taken off?"

"About 10 days, perhaps," Charlotte answered. "And then those incisions will be gone, too."

"It'll all be off you before you know it," assured Sebastian.

"10 days?!", Hector exclaimed in response. He sighed in disappointment.

"Well, let's talk about something else," suggested Charlotte. "What did you do today?"

"Oh!", Hector excitedly shared. "Chloe showed me around."

"Ah! That light-colored pup," Sebastian recalled. "I know her. She's a very good kid."

"She showed me that play place and pool area," Hector told them. "And the place where rescued dogs live."

"Excellent", Sebastian replied.

"But my dad said that there are a few places he did not want me to see yet," Hector said in disappoint.

"He didn't happen to tell you about the areas in the eastern part of the farm, and near the woods, did he?", Sebastian asked.

Hector sighed in disappointment. "He says I can't go there yet."

"And he's absolutely right. For a young pup like you, it's far too dangerous to go off into the woods.", Sebastian replied.

"What's out there in the woods?", Hector asked.

"I'm sorry, Hector. We just shouldn't tell you," Charlotte replied.

"Why not?", Hector protested.

"Oh, Hector," Charlotte chuckled, as she brought out a paw and pulled him against her. "We are only looking out for the well-being of our favorite grandson."

"We don't want you getting hurt or anything," Sebastian added. "And that is what Maximus is thinking, too."

"I feel like Dad just doesn't think I can handle it," Hector protested. "I'm brave. And I think Dad is being a little unfair."

"Hector," Charlotte assured in a calming voice. "Max is concerned, worried for your safety, but he's worried, because he loves you."

Hector sighs.

"You know, Hector," Sebastian said. "If you don't enjoy what you can do now, you will miss out on much bigger stuff later on."

"Well," Hector responded. "I guess there could be some things that pups can do that adult dogs can't."

"Sure," Sebastian assured. "Pups as young as you have no jobs to do. When you grow up, you will be assigned jobs to do by the humans. You won't have as much time for fun."

"Yeah...", Hector replied, in half-agreement.

Charlotte chuckled and gave Hector an affectionate lick on the cheek.

Sebastian walked right next to the fence. He turned to Hector. "You see the view from up here?", he asked Hector.

Hector got up, and walked over to the fence, and looked at the distance. "Wow," he remarked in wonder. "What a view!" The sounds of dogs barking was heard all around.

"I should go," Hector said.

"Well, it was nice talking to you, Hector," replied Sebastian.

"Okay, see you," Hector responded.

Hector padded off back towards the staircase. While he was padding back, he thought about so many questions he wanted answers for. But there was one particular thing he really wanted the answer for the most. What was out in the woods? Why couldn't he go there? What type of dangers are really there? Why won't the grown-ups tell him? He felt that if he wanted those answers, he would have to find a way to get them himself.


	8. Speaking To Other Species

On top of the beagles' barn, right next to the middle window, a large rooster crows loudly repeatedly. Around the barn, the beagles were all slowly opening their eyes at the alarm, and Hector was the first puppy to awaken. Chloe awoken next, sleeping next to him, both a foot away from Maximus and Daisy.

Hector and Chloe both opened their eyes all the way. They both yawned, and turned to look at each other.

"Good morning, Hector," Chloe said in another yawn. "What are you planning to do today?"

Hector got up slowly, and yawned again with a long stretch. Chloe stretched too.

Hector turned around, and crawled towards Daisy. Chloe, after another stretch, turned around to look towards Hector.

Hector was nursing softly. Chloe looked confused, but amused. "Hector, what are you doing?", she asked him.

Hector ignored Chloe and continued to nurse. Daisy's eyes widened when she felt Hector doing that on her tummy. It quickened her awakening after the rooster. After a few moments, she turned her head to look at Hector. Hector caught her eye, and before she could interrogate him, he spun around and began running towards the water bowl in the middle of the barn. Chloe followed him.

Hector leaped on top of the edge of the water bowl, and leaned down to drink. Chloe did the same.

"So, what's gonna happen today?", Chloe asked Hector again. Before Hector could reply, he slipped, yelped, and his front paws went falling into the water, and he fell in.

"Hector!", Chloe exclaimed with worry.

Other dogs were gathering around to drink, and saw it happen.

"Hey, this water is not for sticking your dirty butt in!"

"I don't want to drink it after you've been paddling about in it!"

"Get out, you flea-sized flea-brain!"

Angered thirsty dogs snapped at Hector struggling to get out.

"MAX! DAISY!", all the nearby dogs yelped at Hector's parents. They were now furious and wide awake at this point.

Maximus and Daisy came running towards the bowl. All the angered dogs were barking ferociously.

Before Maximus and Daisy reached the bowl, Chloe grabbed Hector's paw with her paw, and dragged him out of the icy cold water. Hector fell to the ground, and shivered with water and extreme embarrassment, but before Maximus and Daisy could question him, he ran out through a small hole in the wall of the barn, listening to the continued snarling.

Once Hector was out, he took a few moments to catch his breath, spit straw and hay scraps out of his mouth, and shake some of the cold water off of his fur.

"It was only an accident!", Hector protested quietly, half to himself.

He turned his head, and saw a few concerned looking and sounding humans running up towards the barn door. Hector continued running, looking back to be sure nobody was chasing him ready to attack him. He ran across the side of the barn, across the dirt-place, and reached a nearby fence, keeping his eyes focused on the ground so he knew where he was placing his paws. He quickly made dirt, not wanting to do it while those other dogs were around.

As he finished, he could still hear the loud barking coming from inside the barn. "They must be really struggling to command the humans to dump and refill water in the bowl," Hector commented.

"I'll say!", a voice grumbled in response nearby him.

Hector jumped, startled at the unknown voice, landing in the direction he could see who was speaking.

"There has to be a reason they won't shut up!", the same voice spoke again. Hector could see it was a black figure talking. He walked closer.

"It's way too early to make so much noise! The humans don't even appreciate it!", agreed another voice coming from a gray figure.

"Sometimes I just hate dogs!", the black figure angrily exclaimed.

Hector reached them, and saw that there were four of them, laying on top of the fence.

"Who...who are you?", Hector asked nervously.

The orange figure next to the gray figure looked closer at Hector, then jumped down the fence, and stood next to him. He gave Hector a quick sniff. "Are you Maximus's pup?", the orange animal asked.

"Y-yes...", Hector answered slowly.

"Cuz you do smell like him, somewhat," the orange animal added.

"Call me Bear," the black one stated.

"You're a bear?", Hector asked, confused.

"No! They call me Bear. Do I look like a bear?", Bear responded. Bear was large, black, and fluffy, with ears rounded at the tip.

"Yes, you do, and that's why you're called that!", the gray one responded in a demeaning voice. "I'm called Misty, because that's my color."

"We're cats!", Bear exclaimed in defense, directing at Hector.

"Well, if you're felines, then how can you speak canine?", Hector asked, confused.

"Because cats are way smarter than dogs!", the orange cat answered Hector, in a bragging voice. "We have learned to talk to all of the animals on the farm!"

Hector felt slightly offended at those words, but didn't bother to argue. "So, you're name is...", he asked in a slow voice.

"I'm Bandit," the orange cat greeted.

"Bella," the fourth cat spoke, laying on her back. Hector could see that she was very plump.

Hector was watching at how she wasn't really into the conversation. She was just laying there snoozing.

Misty took notice. "I know what you're thinking," she claimed to Hector. "Bella doesn't do much other than lay around all day in the sun."

Hector thought for a moment. "Is she...'cut'?", asked Hector, in an embarrassed, but curious voice.

Bear and Misty exchanged glances at each other, with slight amusement, at the question.

"All four of us are 'cut'", Bandit replied, slightly amused. "Probably because of the way we live."

"You DO live here, don't you?", Hector asked, "As you speak to all the animals here?"

"Well...", Bandit replied.

"How come I've never sensed any of you, then?", Hector stated.

"Sensed?", Misty asked.

"The question is, how come we've never seen you?", Bandit responded to Hector's question.

"Well, it was only since yesterday that I've ever been outside," Hector answered. "I was born blind."

"Oh, well then that explains the stupid cone around your head!", Bear teased.

Hector gives Bear an offended look.

Misty answers Hector's questions before Hector could defend himself. "You see, pup, we live around the area, but not in any particular place."

"Surely you all belong to at least one of the humans here, don't you?", Hector asked.

"Well, no particular humans," Bandit added. "The thing is, we don't really belong to them, exactly."

"We're loners, kind of," Misty added.

"I can see none of you have collars, but either way, do the humans even know any of you?", Hector asked. "What do you mean, 'no particular humans'?"

"Well, during the winter, the humans here kindly let us inside," Bear answered. "But the rest of the year, we just wander around free. The humans let us hang out around here to keep pesky rodents off the property."

"We catch and eat our own food," Misty added.

"And they call you by your names, too?", Hector asked.

"Sure," Bella responded. "They're full of admiration."

"Oh, well, where are you guys when you're not on the farm?", Hector asked.

"The woods," Bella replied.

"The woods?", Hector asked, now very interested, and excited. "You all know the woods?"

"We LIVE in the woods, pretty much," commented Misty. "Our nests where we sleep are there."

"What's in the woods?", Hector demanded, excited.

"Just what a normal forest would have," Bear responded. "Deer, raccoons, rivers, cascades, caves, those kinds of things."

"Not to mention the giant waterfall, the coolest part of the forest!", another voice responded behind Hector. Hector turned around to see his brothers, Buster, Owen, and Gavin. Buster was bragging.

"Hello, Buster," Bella greeted in a blank voice.

"What waterfall?", asked Hector.

"The waterfall we saw on our trip in there," Buster responded. "There was a tall giant building with water monsters in it."

"YOU GUYS have been in the WOODS?", Hector exclaimed, shocked.

"Don't play dumb with us, Runt," Buster replied, "Of course we have."

"Our parents let us do anything we want," Owen bragged.

"Although they did go with us," Gavin added.

"Runt?", Bandit asked, amused. He starts to chuckle. "Nice name, pup. Suits you perfectly."

"I've seen rats bigger than you," Bear teased. All four cats chuckled in response.

"MY NAME IS NOT RUNT!", Hector angrily protested. "IT'S HECTOR!"

The cats slowly stopped their laughing.

"And why won't MY parents let me in the woods?", Hector added.

"I guess your parents aren't cool, then," Owen teased.

"Our parents COMMAND us to have too much fun!", Gavin added.

Buster stands right next to Hector for a moment. He takes his big paw, and pats Hector on the back, hard. Hector mumbles in response.

"Don't worry, little brother," Buster assured in a demeaning voice. "You'll get your chance when you get bigger."

Owen and Gavin start to laugh.

"I mean, IF you get bigger," Buster teases, and shoves Hector, before turning to leave with Owen and Gavin, all three laughing really hard.

"If your parents say you can't go in the woods," Misty assured Hector, "then be a good son, and listen to them."

Hector just sighs in response.

Over the time of the conversation, the dogs have already stopped barking. Now as Hector turned to look, several dogs were trotting out of the barn.

"Uh-oh, we should go," Bear commented.

Hector turned back towards the cats, but before he could ask why they want to leave, all four cats were on the ground, dashing away on the opposite side of the fence, vanishing in the tall grass.

" _They weren't the nicest animals, anyways_ ," Hector thought in response. Then he thought for another couple moments. " _I HAVE to see that waterfall no matter what_!"

Hector ran off across the main dirt-place avoiding the dogs, and headed into the garden. While he was walking on the stones, he spotted Chloe sniffing the flowers. Chloe sure did love plants, especially flowers.

"Hey, Chloe!", Hector called to Chloe, padding up to her.

Chloe stopped sniffing, and turned towards him. "Hi, Hector!", she replied.

"Come on!", Hector urged her. "I just heard about this great place!"

"What place?", Chloe asked in amusement. "What are you talking about?"

"We gotta go see it!", Hector urged again. "Follow me!"

Without waiting for a reply, Hector led Chloe out of the garden.

"So, where are you two going?", asked a voice.

Hector froze, and turned to see Maximus.

"Uh...", Hector started to answer with uncertainty.

"Oh, Hector just told me we have to go see...", Chloe started.

"THE HORSES!", Hector quickly finished, covering his paw over Chloe's mouth to stop her. Chloe then realized that Hector was attempting to sneak.

"Hmm...," Maximus responded. "Didn't I tell you that I don't want you going near the woods?"

"Well...", Hector began to protest.

Daisy joined them. "What's going on?", Daisy asked.

"They want to go see the horses," Maximus told Daisy.

"Very funny, you two," Daisy responded, directing at the two puppies.

"Please!", Hector begged. "I REALLY want to see the horses!"

"Why?", Maximus asked.

"Well...", Hector thought for a moment, a lie that could sound assuring. "I spoke to the nearby cats, and they said that the horses will be brought closer, so that the puppies can all play with them."

"The cats?", Maximus asked, suspicious. "You mean those mean things?"

"Why would they care about that? How would they even know about that?", added Daisy.

"They said that they can speak to all the animals here!", Hector quickly replied.

Maximus thought for a moment, and decided he did not want to start an argument. He sighed. "Alright. You two can go see the horses, but ONLY if they really do come here."

"Thanks, Dad!", Hector exclaimed, and the two pups dashed off towards the end of the hill.

Maximus watched them leave. "But just be careful!", he called to them. "And stay near the spots I've marked for you!" Maximus wasn't sure if the two pups had listened.

Daisy chuckled, and sat right beside Maximus. "Max, who do they remind you of, hmm?"

"Huh?...What?", Maximus responded. "Who?"

"They're just like us when we were little," Daisy commented.

"Exactly," Maximus agreed. "Don't you remember the dangers that we put ourselves in?"

Daisy gave him a smile at the memories of their puppyhood. She placed her paws on him, and pushed him onto the ground, leaning on top of him. "You mean the dangers YOU put us in?", she teased.

They both briefly nuzzled each other. "They'll be fine," Daisy assured in an amused voice.

Daisy let go of him, and began to trot off back towards the barn. Maximus thought for a moment, and turned his head to see his friends, Ranger and Tracker, coming to the edge of the hill. He thought it would be a good idea for someone to watch the two pups just to be sure that they weren't trying to trick him.

"Hey, Ranger, Tracker, come over here!", Maximus called to them.

Ranger and Tracker heard him, and padded over to him. "Good morning, leader," they greeted. "What can we do for you?"

"I want you two to keep a close eye on Hector and Chloe, my pups," Maximus told them. "You know their bound to run off."

"Don't worry, Max," Tracker assured Maximus. "We are on them like sweat and drool on two coaching dogs."

"Hey!", Ranger responded to the offending comment. "We can't help being outside over 12 hours a day!"

"It's a hard truth, Ranger," Tracker insisted. "Live with it."

"Guys!", Maximus exclaimed to get back their attention. "I'm counting on you. Those two pups can get into big mischief!"

"Where were they going?", Ranger asked.

"I guess the horses were coming to the playground to play with some pups," Maximus told them. "Just make sure they are not getting into trouble. They just headed down the hill. Go find and join them."

"Okeydokey!", Ranger and Tracker both agreed, and began to race down the hill.

Down below, Hector and Chloe were walking together, and trying to avoid anyone from noticing them.

"So where are we REALLY going?", Chloe quietly asked Hector.

"To find a huge waterfall that humans ride on," Hector told her.

"WOW!", Chloe exclaimed.

"Shush!", Hector silenced her for the second. "We don't want anyone to hear."

"Right," Chloe agreed. "So why are we going to the waterfall?"

As Hector was about to tell her what the cats told him, Ranger and Tracker called out their names. "Hector! Chloe!"

Hector realizes that they were being followed. "Oh, man...", he complained quietly.

"Hey you two, what's up?", Ranger greeted the two pups.

"Who are you?", Hector asked.

Ranger and Tracker chuckled. "You haven't officially met us yet, have you Hector?"

Hector sighed in disappointment.

"Ranger and Tracker at your service!", Ranger and Tracker said together.

"Were you trying to find us?", asked Chloe.

"Yes," Tracker stated. "Max told us that you two wanted to play with the horses."

Hector sighed again, now mad his lie would no longer work. "Yeah...more like I want to MEET them though...", Hector lied again. "I guess they aren't here yet..."

"That's okay," Ranger stated. "We can take you to see the horses. I'm sure that Max wouldn't mind as long as we went with you."

"Let's go!", Tracker insisted excitedly.

Both Chloe and Hector sighed, knowing they weren't really dying to see the horses. Chloe knows them already. They reluctantly followed as Ranger and Tracker led the way towards the horsebarn. A couple minutes later, they reached a wooden fence, and 3 horses were grazing near it.

"Hey guys!", Ranger and Tracker greeted the horses.

"You sure they can speak dog?", Hector asked Chloe.

"Yeah," Chloe assured Hector.

The three horses walked over to the side of the fence to see the dogs.

"That's Champ, Starlight, and Rainstorm," Chloe introduced the horses to Hector.

"Hi," Hector greeted sarcastically.

"Why, hello there," Champ greeted the white pup. "Are you that Hector that Maximus told me about?"

"Yeah," Hector replied. "This is me."

"First time we've ever seen you," Rainstorm commented. "Sure is exciting that you have finally got your sight!"

"Yeah...", Hector agreed.

"You wanted to meet us, huh?", asked Starlight.

"Ah-heh," Hector replied, struggling to sound like he really wanted to.

"So, when are you guys coming out to the playground?", Tracker asked the horses.

Hector froze.

"The playground?", Starlight asked.

"That's okay, horses!", Hector quickly put in to protect his lie. "You don't have to come to the playground. I just wanted to see you." Hector chuckled nervously, not sure how they will respond.

"Oh, okay," Champ responded in a confused tone.

"Well, we are certainly happy to meet you," Rainstorm commented.

"We will take you for a ride if you want," Champ invited.

"Really?", Hector asked, sort of becoming interested.

"I rode Starlight on the course," Chloe remarked. "It was fun over the obstacles."

"But," Rainstorm warned, "Not when humans are here."

"Same reason we do not speak in front of them," Starlight added. "But, yeah."

"Okay," Hector thanked. Hector decided to ask another question, to try and hide his lie more. "So, how come you can speak canine if you're equine?"

"Well, living here for years, and you can pick up plenty of things," Rainstorm answered.

"Experience, other communication, observance, many things you can learn," Champ added.

"So I can learn to speak to another species, too?", Hector asked.

"Sure," Starlight replied. "If you study and learn hard, you can give it a shot."

"It happened unintentionally, over time, for us," stated Rainstorm.

"But, you really have no need to here," Champ assured Hector. "Nearly all of the animals here can speak to dogs."

"Oh," Hector replied. He changed the subject. "Well, I just wanted to meet the horses for the first time. There were other things I wanted to do today, since this is my second day," he said to Ranger and Tracker.

Ranger and Tracker did not seem to think anything of it, showing no suspicion of Hector lying. "Okay," they responded in agreement. "Let's go back, then."

Ranger and Tracker led the way back to the barn, Hector and Chloe trotting alongside each other, talking quietly.

"I know I will find a way to get us there," Hector told Chloe. "I just haven't found it yet."

"Well, for right now, you should find something else to do," Chloe responded. "And perhaps you should wait on this waterfall trip until you are free of that cone."

As Chloe and Hector trotted behind them, Ranger and Tracker half way through, stopped, turned around, and watched them speaking softly to each other with admiration and humor.

"Oh, just look at you two," Ranger commented to Hector and Chloe. They stopped talking, and looked towards Ranger and Tracker.

"Two little flowers sitting next to each other in an open garden," Tracker commented.

"Max and Daisy will be thrilled," Ranger commented. "To you two being next in line."

"Next in line?", Hector asked, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, you know, your parents are the leaders of the dogs," Tracker stated.

"If you two as best friends get along so well, you'd be intended, to be chosen, through a tradition, to be the next leaders," Ranger added.

Hector and Chloe looked at each other with questionable faces. "Meaning?", they both asked.

"One day you two are going to be mates!", Ranger and Tracker exclaimed together.

Hector and Chloe gave disgusted mumbles at the comment.

"I can't be Chloe's sire," Hector protested. "She's my sister."

"Yeah," Chloe agreed. "It would be like totally insane."

"Hah!", Ranger disagreed. "You will see soon where your place in the pack belongs."

"I believe you two are destined to be together," Tracker insisted. "You two make an adorable couple."

"Oh, brother," Hector and Chloe responded together.

"Can we just keep going?", Hector urged.

"Alright," Ranger and Tracker both agreed together.

When the dogs reached the barn, Ranger and Tracker went inside to get a drink, while Hector and Chloe decided to enter the house. They walked into the back room where two birds slept. Hector knew them since they were usually inside the house. He spent so much time outside yesterday, he forgot to show them he could now see.

"Hugo! Nick!", Hector greeted the two birds. Nick was a cockatoo, and Hugo was a macaw. Hugo was usually the more intelligent one, while Nick was more often playful and clumsy.

Nick and Hugo looked at Hector. "Why, hello Hector," they greeted.

"Look at that!", Nick commented.

"You are no longer blind," Hugo added.

"Yeah!", Hector responded. "Happened yesterday."

"Well, we certainly are happy for you," Nick congratulated.

"How's the piano working for you now?", Hugo asked.

"What's a piano?", asked Hector, confused.

"The thing you play with that makes beautiful sounds," Hugo replied.

"Oh, that object," Hector replied. "I haven't played it with sight yet."

"Ah," Nick said in understanding.

Hector thought for a moment. "How did you know it was called a piano? I mean, is that what the humans call it?"

"Yes," Hugo replied. "We mimic their sounds easily, not with dog language of course, but translated to that, it is called a piano."

" _Wow_!", Hector thought. "Can you teach me to mimic?"

Hugo and Nick looked at each other confused, and Hector wondered if he had asked a very strange question.

"Are you saying you want to learn human language?", Hugo asked.

"Why at all would you want to do that?", Chloe asked Hector.

"I think my life would be easier if I understood humans," Hector stated. "Just think about the chaos that happened earlier with all the barking!"

"Humans cannot understand dogs, and dogs cannot understand humans," Hugo stated. "That's the way it is."

"Well, then," Hector asked, "How come you two can talk to humans?"

"We don't really speak, exactly," Nick answered. "We more mimic. If we always spoke their language in sentences, they surely would not find it normal."

"And frequency sound in speech could be a hidden link to it," Hugo added.

"What do you mean?", Hector asked. "If I spoke at a different frequency, I could talk to them?"

"Don't go getting any ideas, Hector," Chloe warned. "It is a known law, that animals do not speak to humans."

"Exactly," Nick and Hugo agreed.

"And besides," Chloe continued. "Humans talk in such a quick, muttered, and jumbled language, it would be impossible to learn every word they say."

Hector gave all three a look of a mixture of disappointment and confusion.

"You think we parrots can learn and memorize a human statement, and its meaning, just then?", Hugo asked Hector.

"Think again," Nick answered for him.

Hector continued his gaze.

To end the strange conversation, Chloe insisted they go do something else. "C'mon, Hector," she urged, "Let's go play outside."

Hector turned his head towards Chloe, and nodded in agreement, thinking the parrots have nothing much more to say right now.

"See you!", both pups called back.

"Bye!", both parrots squawked in reply.

As the two pups headed on outside, Chloe led the way towards the playground. On the way, Hector had a new thought in mind. " _Is it possible? Could I learn to speak to humans? What would happen if I did? And how would I be able to do it? How would it affect my future?_ ", he thought. Hector decided to put the forest trip aside for now, and find a new hobby until he's free of the collar. He wasn't sure if this should be it, but it was a thought that he wanted to keep in his mind either way.


	9. A New Hobby And Goal

The next morning, after Hector got up, he trotted outside the barn door. Outside, dogs were barking at something, and Hector wanted to know what this chaos was all about. He spotted Chloe with other dogs barking at the fence next to the sidewalk that surrounded the farm, just in front of the dirt-place.

" _What could they possibly be barking at_?", Hector thought, looking at how many there were. Some of the dogs began running alongside the sidewalk. Hector ran up to the barking dogs, and when he reached there, he got in front of them, and looked down the sidewalk. His ears perked when he noticed two monsters were approaching the farm. One was a rectangle-shaped normal one, while the other was very small, and seemed to be missing many of its body parts. Hector noticed the humans riding them. As the monsters got closer, Hector crouched, but he realized they were stopping when they reached the farm. Some of the continuing barking dogs ran to and tried to jump on the human riding the small defective monster.

Hector heard the master calling, and saw that the human was calling to him, as if he was wanting the dogs to get off him. When the master came, the other human took a white tube-shaped object out of his bag on his back, and threw it at the master, the master catching it. After that, the human rode off quickly on his small monster, having it get the dogs to move out of the way. As a few of the barking dogs tried to chase the human, the master whistled and called them back over to let the human go.

The other human, in the big normal-looking monster, paused his monster in front of the pole with the box on top of it. The master ran up to him, and it looked to Hector like the master was trying to tell him something. The human gave the master a stack of objects, and a box.

" _I wonder what's in the box_ ," Hector thought, seeing that the master is making it look like it's heavy. The master looked like he was waving good-bye to the human, and the human did it back, and then commanded his monster to continue, and rode away. A lot of the dogs went chasing after the monster, Hector not sure why, as monsters can be very dangerous he learned. As Hector watched the monster go, he saw other humans that live here trying to call and whistle to the dogs to get them to stop. Hector noticed his brown-shaded tri-colored brother, Cocoa, was taking the lead to follow the monster.

"That's right, run!", Hector heard Chloe's voice seem to call after the human in the monster. "And never come back here again!"

As Hector turned to see Chloe, she was already padding up to him.

"What was that all about?", Hector asked Chloe when she reached him.

"Those two humans, they intrude our farm all the time!", she exclaimed.

"Is that why everyone went crazy?"

"Yeah, we are trying so hard to get them to stop trespassing on the master's territory!"

"Uh..."

"Next time, you try and tell them off!"

"Well, the master didn't seem to mind them coming. He seemed to be very friendly to them. What's the point of barking and chasing them all the time, when the master does not seem bothered by them and they just keep coming back?"

Chloe gave Hector an almost dumbfounded look, and he thought for a moment that he said something that does not make sense, even though he was sure it made perfect sense.

"It's really a fun activity," Chloe finally stated.

"Oh," Hector responded.

"The play-place I think today is for the 'cut' dogs,"

"You mean, we have to find something else to do?"

"Yeah."

"You know?"

"What?"

"I kinda want to see what it really was the humans gave the master."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah!"

"Well, I'm gonna go and find Cocoa. Last time he chased the monster, he scraped his paws. The flea-brain!"

"Okay. I guess I'll see you later."

"Okay." Chloe gave Hector a wave of her tail and she ran across the garden.

Hector ran back across the yard, and entered inside the house next to the barn, struggling to get through the big flap, and looked for the master. He saw the master in the room with the piano, on the floor, trying to open the box. Hector thought he could help the master, and trotted over to him. The master turned his head, and looked at Hector, smiling, and talking in a happy voice. Hector listened closely, and actually noticed the master saying a sound like "box", as if he was repeating the same word. Hector wondered if the master was asking for help, and he leaned in closer, sniffing the box. Hector then yipped at the master, trying to get the master to answer his question. The master answered in an inviting voice, and then called across the room, probably directing at other humans in the house. Hector listened closely, and came across "chew". The master looked back at him, and Hector now was thinking the master did want his help in opening the box. Two other humans walked into the room, and Hector heard the word "chew", again.

" _They must be asking me to chew the box open_ ," Hector thought. But Hector knew his teeth were not that strong right now. Not enough to open a box. He took another look at the humans standing against the wall, watching. Their faces looked hopeful. " _No. Maybe they are testing me_ ," Hector thought again. Even though he was blind during that time, he knew the humans were fascinated with his rare piano talent.

Hector decided that instead of using his baby teeth to chew, he would try and use his claws. The box was big compared to his tiny size, and he climbed on top of it. He looked closely at the box, and noticed a thinner line in the middle of it. He took his tiny right paw, and put a hard poke through the thin line in the middle. He then saw that he could, and ran his paw down the middle line. When he finished that line, he went to the other lines on the box, and did the same. He realized that the lines were not the cardboard, but a slightly sticky material, and when he got all the lines, he shook his paw to get its remains off.

The master and other two humans began to laugh at him, but in a happy tone, and started talking in a loud proud sounding voice, clapping their hands. Hector watched them, and he was thinking the humans were all congratulating and were very impressed with him.

Hector certainly caught a phrase. They all said "Good boy, Hector!". All the dogs on the farm actually understand the phrase, "Good boy" and "Good girl", and it always means the human or humans are praising them. Hector yipped thankfully to the humans in response.

The master reached inside the now open box and pulled an object out of the box. It was about the size of the box, and had blue on the outside and white in the middle. The master pushed the box aside, and examined it. The two other humans sat next to the master, as if they were asking what it was. Hector crouched towards the object, and sniffed it. The master was saying something to the other two humans. When Hector stopped sniffing it, the master revealed, to Hector's curiousity, that there were several white sheets inside of it, all with images and black markings. As Hector looked closely at it, he listened to what the humans were saying. Hector thought he heard them say something like "book", but he's never heard of the word "book".

" _It must be called a book, then_ ," Hector thought.

The master put his eyes on Hector, and Hector returned the look, and the master made sounds as if he was asking Hector a question. Hector yipped in response to show he was listening, though he couldn't understand. The master took his hand and petted the top of Hector's head, and scooped him up in his hand, got up, and carried the book in his other hand. The master walked over to the other side of the room, and layed down on the long soft nest, and placed Hector on his lap. Hector was not quite sure what the master was going to do, but he was interested, and layed down on him as the master spoke to him in a calm voice.

The master opened the book, and Hector looked at two white sheets. On one there was an image of a big brown dog, and on the other were mysterious black markings. Hector squinted his eyes, as his vision was not that great, and the markings looked a little blurry to him. But at least they weren't too small.

The master spoke, as he flipped the sheets, and Hector was noticing that he seemed to be moving his eyes across the markings, as if the markings were displaying what he was saying, like when dogs would use their body language to communicate with humans. As the master continued to speak, Hector tried observing his speaking and the markings. However, it was indeed true that humans spoke too jumbled to understand completely. Regardless, Hector kept all his attention, his sight and his hearing, focused on the book and the master speaking.

Over some time, Hector was recognizing a few of the markings as the master began to speak slower. But that was mostly because those particular markings were giant, and marked the first marking on the sheet.

After a little over an hour, the master closed the book, and sat up. Hector got up, and jumped down from the nest. Hector looked at the master's face, as he was talking to him. Hector thought he looked sick of talking. The master walked away, placing the book down on the nest. Hector followed him to see what he was doing next. Hector followed the master into the room where he knew the humans usually would prepare food. He watched the master open up the tall giant box that had a cool breeze that came out of it, and grab a cylinder-shaped object, which the master appeared to take a drink out of, and closing the box. As he drank, Hector turned around and spotted a small water bowl that they kept in there. He walked over to it, and took a drink he needed as well.

After that, knowing the master probably will not be speaking any more markings right now, Hector decided to go outside and look for Chloe. He pushed his way through the flap, and went down the steps into the yard. He entered inside the garden, knowing Chloe is likely in there, especially when the play-place was closed. As he expected, he found Chloe, but she appeared to be talking to two other pups. All laying down in the shallow part of the pond, Chloe was chatting to Cocoa and Rocky.

"Hey guys!", Hector called to them.

All three pups turned their heads towards Hector. Hector padded over to join them.

Cocoa sighed in annoyance. "What do you want, Runt?", he grumbled.

"Can't you see we're in the middle of our conversation?", added Rocky.

"I learned something really cool!", Hector exclaimed, ignoring them.

"What Hector?", Chloe asked.

"Humans can speak through markings!", Hector explained excitedly.

Cocoa and Rocky looked at each other with confusion, and Hector now thought he said something that sounded really stupid. Chloe actually shared a similar look.

"There is this object that I think is called a book," Hector continued, "And that was what was in the box the human in the big monster handed to the master."

Cocoa and Rocky gave Hector a blank look, Chloe a confused look.

"I watched the master take the book, and appear to be looking at the black markings, and only speaking what appeared to be them," Hector still went on.

His siblings still did not respond.

Hector went on again. "Certain sounds he was making seemed to be the same for particular markings."

His siblings still kept silent.

"What?", Hector asked at the silence.

"You're weird, Runt," Rocky stated.

Cocoa sighed. "You're so pathetic in so many ways," he added.

Hector looked almost surprised that they weren't interested in his story.

"Come on, Cocoa," Rocky told Cocoa, "We don't have time to listen to this dung."

"Agreed," Cocoa agreed. "Let's go." Cocoa and Rocky got up, and began to walk away. "See you, Chloe," Cocoa said to Chloe, as they both left.

"They didn't think that was interesting?", Hector asked Chloe.

"Are you trying to learn human language, Hector?", Chloe asked Hector in response, with slight concern.

"Well, like the horses described it as, it was unintentional," Hector answered.

"And now you are going to beg for more 'marking speaking', because it was 'unintentional', and you happened to be 'interested' in it?"

Hector was surprised at Chloe's somewhat concerned tone. "What's wrong with doing that?", he asked.

"It's just not what dogs do," Chloe stated. "Wouldn't you rather do something fun?"

Hector was even more surprised when she said that. " _But, it WAS fun! At least for me_!", he thought. "Well, what are the other dogs doing right now?", he asked Chloe.

"Some of them are actually taking a trip into the woods," Chloe answered, in a reluctant-to-tell voice. "With the humans riding the horses."

"Really?", Hector asked, shocked. "And WE couldn't go?"

"Trust me, Hector," Chloe assured, "If we could have gone with them, Max and Daisy would have told us we could."

Although Hector felt jealous upon hearing that, knowing Buster was probably on that trip, leading the way maybe even, he did feel content with having new hobbies. "What are the other dogs doing?", he asked.

"Some of them are just playing with the humans and/or with each other," Chloe answered. "And some of them just chatting, like I was with Rocky and Cocoa."

"Oh."

Chloe chuckled briefly. "Cocoa did not scrape his paws this time, but he did trip over himself, and caused a dog collision on the pathway."

Hector gave a brief chuckle also, in response.

"You have never played fetch before, have you?", Chloe asked.

"Fetch?", Hector asked.

"Yeah, it's fun. Want me to show you?"

"Sure!"

Chloe led the way out of the garden, and took Hector through the house, to the yard behind it. Several dogs were playing and goofing around.

"So, how do you play fetch?", Hector asked Chloe.

"It's simple. Watch," Chloe instructed Hector.

Hector watched Chloe trot over to a stick, and pick it up with her jaws. Then she raced towards a nearby human, and scratched his legs. She dropped the stick in front of him, and yipped. She then bent down, lifted her rear up in the air, and wagged her tail. The human happily spoke to her, and picked up the stick. The human then held it up high behind him, and threw it forward, with Chloe chasing after it. When Chloe captured it in her jaws, she turned around, and brought it back to the human. She dropped it, and yipped to Hector. Hector was confused, but came up to them.

"Now it's your turn!", Chloe stated to Hector.

"What?", Hector asked.

He looked up, and saw the human was talking to and looking at him now, and he threw it. Hector saw where it landed, but he hesitated, not understanding the game.

Chloe took notice, and brushed up against him. "Now you go grab it and bring it back," she instructed.

"Oh...o...okay," Hector stammered. He ran up to the stick, grabbed it, and brought it back to the human, just as Chloe did. He dropped the stick in front of the human. "Now what do I do?", he muttered.

The human picked up the stick, and threw it again. Hector looked at Chloe, and Chloe signaled to him to go get it. Hector obeyed, and did the same thing again. And again. And again.

After the next time, Hector went after the stick, but did not bring it back. After a few moments, Chloe padded up to him when she noticed he wasn't doing it now.

"I don't get it," Hector told Chloe.

"What do you mean?", she asked.

"What's the game?"

"What are you talking about? This is the game!"

Hector gave her a baffled stare. "You mean 'fetch' is just the human throwing the stick, and the dog bringing it back, only for the human to throw it again and the dog bring it back again?"

"Well, not always. There are better ways to play it."

"Oh," Hector gave a sigh of relief. "Then what's a better way to play it?"

"Sometimes the human throws a ball, a disc, and/or uses a launching thing."

Hector gave an unsatisfied expression. "Wait. But it's still basically the same thing?"

"Well, when you happen to be in a small throwing area, yes."

Hector looked around at the other dogs playing fetch, then thought for a moment. Then he looked back at Chloe. "Doesn't that seem like a worthless game? What's the point of it?"

Chloe laughed softly. "Hector, you only think that because you spent the first few weeks of your life blind. You never got to see the type of fun the other dogs were having."

"I don't know. I had much fun playing that 'piano', and with sight now, it'd be more fun."

"Believe me. The game gets addicting when you've played it several times."

"When you say 'several times', do you mean how many times the object was thrown and brought back, or how many times you start and end the game?"

Chloe gave Hector a dumbfounded look, and Hector thought she thought he was sounding crazy and insane, yet still making sense at the same time.

"Well, dogs don't just play fetch with the humans," Chloe stated.

"Then what else do they play?", Hector asked.

"Tug-of-war. Though you may have seen that before. That's when two dogs or a human and a dog would take a rope and see who's stronger."

Hector gave Chloe a serious look.

"Right, for your size, probably not a good idea," she agreed, not wanting to sound offensive. "But then there's, um...," Chloe thought for a moment. "There's bubble popping!"

"Is that just when the humans blow the bubbles, and the dogs pop them, and after they are all popped, they just do it again?"

"Maybe...", Chloe muttered.

"No thank you," Hector decided. "I think I'll just go find something else to do."

"Okay, but I'm staying out here to play."

"Go ahead. But I'm going back inside."

Without another word, Hector trotted off towards the door, and went back inside the house. He saw other humans sitting on the long nest, and Hector jumped up on top of it to join them. A female human looked at him, smiled, and stroked his back. Hector climbed into her lap, and looked towards the box with moving pictures. There were humans talking on it too, but Hector knew those humans could not see him. He listened closely, and squinted his eyes for a better look. He realized that on the screen were actually what he had seen in the book!

" _Those look like the same markings, in a different order_!", he thought happily.

The human on the screen was standing in front of a blue and green figure, and Hector listened and looked closely at the markings. He actually, after several minutes of close examination, noticed the connection between certain marking patterns and the sounds of "weather", "news", and "storms", and he felt sure that the marking that resembles a snake sounds like a snake. He watched the screen with the humans for another 30 minutes, struggling to take in every sound and marking, until the humans turned it off, and walked away. Hector jumped down from the human's lap, and off the nest. He followed the humans into the food room, and took a drink from the water bowl. By then, he felt starved, and wanted to go find Daisy so he could nurse.

He walked through the door leading to the barn, and looked for Daisy. While he was looking, his mind was full of excitement. " _Like the horses said: if I study hard, and learn all I can about it, maybe I can soon understand human language_!", he thought. Hector decided that learning the language of humans WOULD BE his new hobby, and he didn't care what the other dogs would think. " _So what I want to do this? They are wanting to spend their free time playing the most useless games ever, and they'll think I'M insane_?", he thought again. Hector wasn't sure how it would turn out, but he was proud of himself, and was determined to reach this goal successfully. He felt that this new hobby and goal somehow was the very first step in deciding what he should do with his life.


	10. Trying To Fit In

Many more days have passed. Hector was enjoying his new hobby so much, he basically did nothing else. Every day all day he was always begging the humans to walk through the books with him. The humans did begin finding it exhausting, but they still found it fascinating too. Hector would go to the bookshelf, climb up it, and knock a book on the ground; then he would carefully climb back down, and either attempt to push it across the wooden part of the floor under the bookshelf and bring it to a nearby human, or usually, because many of the books were large and he was tiny, he would run over to a human and get him or her to pick it up, as the humans by now would know that's a book he picked out. Many of the humans tried to ignore him, but fortunately for Hector, there were so many that worked there, there was bound to be at least a few that would do it, different ones, each day. Chloe had been doing other activities, and actually did not see much of Hector over this time. She kept inviting him to her games, but Hector kept telling her that he just wanted to perform his hobby, and nothing else. Chloe had very few issues with any of the other pups on the farm, so she always had plenty of them to play with. Rumors were starting to go around the farm, that Hector was trying to learn human language. Maximus and Daisy were aware of it, but they couldn't persuade Hector to do anything else, either. For the current time, because Hector was having a hard time fully understanding the random talking of the humans, he chose to just listen to their marking talking. After all, that should be the most important part of learning human language. If he could understand the markings, he could more easily get their regular sounds.

Hector did learn many more sounds the humans made in their jumbled speaking. He learned that the really big soft nests the humans normally slept on were called "beds", the small ones in the room with the piano were called "chairs", and as for the medium-sized ones, he kept getting confused between "couch" and "sofa". The box with the moving pictures was "teevee", the very tall cold box in the food-preparing room was either a "fridge" or "freeze-er-ator", and the large wooden object the humans placed food on was a "table". Hector was also realizing that nearly every time he begged to a human for a book story, he or she seemed to keep saying something like "read" or more like "wamereedieook". Hector decided that this "marking language" could be called "read" or "reading", so that is what he began calling it.

Hector was recognizing the look of 36 different markings. 10 of them appeared to never sit next to any of the 26 others. Two of the markings looked like snakes, and Hector was trying hard to tell them apart with his vision that's not that great. Much harder though, were two other markings. They both usually looked the exact same, but these broke the rule on 10 of them not touching the other 26, and also one seemed more of a circle, while the other was more of an oval, and those are the two reasons why he was attempting to recognize those as two seperate markings. Hector was getting better and better at it, but mostly because the humans were getting so sick and tired of reading the books to him, that they were slowing down their sounds, making it easier to match them with the markings.

With spending so much time with the reading, time has gone by. Hector was taken back to the vet. He spent the night there, and woke up realizing that the "strings" on his face were gone, and so was the cone. That day had passed, and Hector slept in the nest of hay and straw much more comfortably now.

He woke up the next morning to find that all the dogs in the barn appeared to already be wide awake. The barking woke him up. Looking towards the barn door, he could see that the dogs were already exiting, and looking around the nest, Chloe was gone already too. " _Is something really exciting happening today_?", Hector thought.

A minute later, after Hector stretched and yawned, he noticed a human walking towards him. The human bent down and scooped him up with her hand. She brought him inside the house, and set him on a table. " _What is going on today_?", he thought, pretending to ask the humans near him. He watched the human that brought him in. She was washing her hands as well as the few nearby humans. Hector heard someone else enter the room, and turned to see Maximus.

"What's going on today?", Hector asked Maximus. "Everyone seems really excited about something."

"Today is a big day, Hector," Maximus replied. "There's going to be training sessions in the play-place."

"Training sessions?"

"That means no...whatever you call your hobby, today."

"Reading books."

"Yeah."

"Is that why you're here? You were looking for me to tell me that?"

"Yes. I saw a human bringing you in here, and...although the humans also also know what's happening..."

Maximus stopped as the humans were approaching Hector. Hector looked at the one who brought him in, and saw she was carrying a small object in her hand, while another human was carrying a damp cloth. Hector realized why she brought him in here. " _OH NO! Not THIS again_!", he complained in his head.

One human grabbed Hector while the one with the damp cloth wiped it gently across his eyes. Maximus knew what they were doing, and sat and waited for them to finish.

The female human carrying the small object approached and tried to grab Hector's chin, but Hector started to struggle. The humans were trying to calm him in a gentle reassuring voice. " _It is NOT okay_!", he disagreed with the humans in thought. As the human tried to hold his head back, Hector angrily nipped her fingers twice.

"Hector!", Maximus barked scoldingly in response.

As Hector was whining, she managed to drop the medicine into both of Hector's eyes. The humans let go of him after wiping his paws. They placed him on the floor. Hector continued whining and blinked and rubbed his eyes with his paws.

"Hector!", Maximus ordered Hector. "Stop rubbing your eyes."

"But it BURNS!", Hector wailed. "It STINGS!"

"The humans are only trying to help."

Hector batted his face. "Ow!"

"It will hurt less if you get used to it."

"What?"

"It's probably a daily treatment, son. Learn to tolerate it."

Hector reluctantly stopped touching his face. Maximus walked over to the water bowl, and took a drink. Hector slowly followed as the pain started to go away.

"Where's Daisy?", Hector asked Maximus.

"She's at the play area where we're doing the training sessions. Why?"

"I'm hungry."

Maximus sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. "Hector?"

"What is it?"

Maximus gave Hector a serious look. "You do know you can't just keep drinking your mother's milk, right?"

"What do you mean?"

"She's been tolerating it for you, but your teeth are hurting her. You have to start eating solid food. While you were busy with your "reading", your brothers and sisters were all getting weaned."

"What?"

Maximus walked over to another bowl, and saw that it still had puppy chow in it. Hector followed him. "Here, try this," Maximus told Hector as he pushed the bowl towards him.

Hector looked into the small bowl at the food, and let out a grumble of disgust. "No thank you," he said in disagreement.

"Have you ever tried it?"

"Well...no, but..."

"Then how do you know you don't like it if you've never tried it?"

Hector reluctantly bent over, and grabbed a mouthful in his jaws. He squinted his eyes and face at the not-very-good flavor. He gave a grunt of disgust, then looked at his father.

Maximus gave Hector a stern look.

Hector chewed it a little, and swallowed it all slowly, then shuddered.

"Finish up," Maximus ordered. "We'll be late for the games."

Maximus looked up at the humans, and spoke as if saying the same thing. He nodded in agreement, and joined two of them as they headed out. The third stayed behind, and Hector looked at him, and the human was staring down at him. Hector returned the stare, and the human walked to the table, and grabbed a large bag with a scoop in it. The human bent down in front of Hector and the bowl with the big bag, and the human took the scoop and filled up the rest of the bowl with more of the food. When the human got up, Hector looked at the now full bowl with shock, and heard the human tell him to "eat". Hector took a few steps back, and the human put the bag of food back on the table, and sat down on the floor watching Hector.

Hector, now realizing the human will not let him leave until he finishes all the food, and knowing his father is waiting for him, gave a long loud groan of disappointment and anger, and continued eating until the bowl was empty.

When Hector finished eating and drinking, the human picked him up and carried him to the gates. When they reached the gates, Hector heard the sounds of excited dogs. As the human set him on the ground, Hector raced across the grass looking for Chloe.

"All right, all you pups, let's all gather around here!"

Hector heard a familiar voice calling nearby. All the other pups around gathered together in a small crowd in front of the calling dog. Hector spotted Chloe, and padded up to join her.

"Good morning, Chloe," Hector greeted.

"Hi, Hector," Chloe greeted back.

The dog calling was Deputy, Maximus's best friend. Hector knew Deputy was planning on being a coaching dog for this event. Deputy was tri-colored, but most of his body was black. Ranger, Tracker, and Maximus were joining Deputy.

"Good morning, how's everyone doing today?", Deputy announced to all the pups.

"Good!"

"Awesome!"

"Cool!"

The pups around Hector all joyfully answered together.

"All right, pups!", Deputy announced. "Today, we will be having a training day, where all of you will be practicing skills in a fun way!"

"Now, most of you have done this before, but for a few of you, this is new, so we will explain again what we do at this event!", Ranger added.

"In this event, you will be practicing important skills that we dogs all must know well!", Tracker explained.

"Talented tricks!", announced Ranger.

"Agility and sports!", added Tracker.

"And most important of all for us hounds," Maximus added.

"Sniffing!", Deputy finished.

"We will be dividing into four groups!", Maximus explained. "Each of us four coaching dogs will be guiding you through four different stations!"

"We will explain the directions for the activities according to the current station you are in!", Deputy added. "We will rotate until all you pups have had your time in each station!"

The four coaching dogs huddled together and quickly discussed something.

"I sure hope these are not more of those stupid useless games you call fun," Hector grumbled quietly to Chloe.

"Trust me," Chloe assured Hector. "These activities WILL be fun. I've been waiting for this day forever!"

"If it's SO fun, how come I'VE never heard of it?", Hector asked.

Chloe gave Hector an uncertain stare. "Because you were too busy with your "reading" to know anything that's been going on."

Before Hector could reply, the coaching dogs went on.

"Okay, everyone, this is how it will go," Maximus announced. "For tricks, come with me."

"For agility, me," Tracker added.

"For sports, me," Ranger added.

"And for sniffing, the best one, me!," Deputy added.

"Get into your groups everyone! And we will get started!", Maximus announced.

Yips of excitement sounded from the pups as they chose their first station.

Hector looked uneasily at the commotion. "I'll go where you go, Chloe," he told Chloe.

"You know," Chloe told Hector, "When they say "tricks", it does mean, in a way, listening to humans giving you orders."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's the only time they say a single sound, to where you can actually get it. The hard part is memorizing it."

"Well, if I find none of these spark my interest, this one perhaps will at least be better than the other ones."

"Then let's go join Dad."

Chloe and Hector padded up to Maximus. Connor and Cocoa were also on the team. To Hector's shock, Buster, Owen, and Gavin were too.

"Uh...do you think they'll give me trouble...?", Hector asked Chloe.

"Do you want to switch to another team?", Chloe responded suggestively.

Hector nodded, and they picked their way through the crowd of pups. When they got out, they saw that the other teams were already leaving. As they started to trot over to one, they heard Maximus calling and padding up to them.

"Chloe! Hector!", Maximus said. "Welcome to the team! I think you'll like this station Hector."

"The tricks...", Hector slowly started.

Maximus got in front of the small crowd of pups. A group of humans were approaching. "All right everyone, watch me. These are visual instructions."

The pups gathered in a line to watch Maximus. The humans went up to them with Maximus, and appeared to be announcing something too. Then one turned to Maximus, and glanced at the pups to see they were paying attention. The human said a very small single sound. After it, Maximus sat. Then the human said another small sound, and Maximus layed down. Another sound, he rolled over. Another, he played dead. Another he stood up, then barked, then spun around, then jumped, then begged, then sat pretty, then stood on 2 legs, then ended with a flip. The pups yipped in applaud. The human took something out of a small box hanging on his wore pelt after all that, and appeared to feed it to Maximus out of his hand. Then the human petted Maximus's back, and took a few steps back. The human announced something to the pups, and discussed something quietly with the other humans. While the humans were not watching, Maximus stepped closer to the pups, and spoke.

"So, the point here is, a human will speak a single familiar sound, and it will mean a simple command it wants you to do. You have to memorize each sound and its meaning by heart, and perform it when a human tells you to. After you do the simple command, the human may or may not reward you with a treat. But either way, don't just do it for treats. A dog obeys his or her human and does everything it tells him or her to do," Maximus explained. "Easy enough?"

"Yeah," the pups responded.

"It should not take you guys very long to memorize one sound, but don't get mixed up with another similar one," Maximus added. "Some of them will sound much like another. It is your job to know the difference between them."

The humans ended their brief discussion, and walked over to the pups, each one picking a pup up. A male picked Chloe up, and a female picked Hector up, and carried them to different spaces.

When the human put Hector on the ground, she sat down on the grass in front of him. She spoke to him in a gentle voice. One sound she was making sounded the same. Hector was thinking this tiny little sound meant the trick. The human took out a "treat", and held it in front of Hector's face. Hector sniffed it. " _She's not expecting me to eat that is she? It probably tastes just like that food in the bowl_!", Hector thought in disgust. The human held it up high over his head, and said the same little sound a few times, and Hector looked up at it, not getting what to do. He wasn't sure he wanted it anyway. The human again showed it to his nose, and Hector sniffed it again, then she put it over his head and spoke the sound again. Then did it again. Hector got the feeling she wanted him to keep sniffing it. So Hector briefly stood up on his hind legs, and touched the treat with his nose. She held it there for a few moments, then Hector sat down, and a heartbeat after his rear touched the dirt, the human spoke in a praising sounding voice, and offered the treat to his mouth.

Hector hesitated for a moment. " _Oh, okay. But only because it's part of the process_ ," Hector thought in agreement. He took the treat and chewed it. His eyes widened in shock. " _Hmm_...," Hector thought in interest. " _This actually does not taste bad_." Hector swallowed it.

The human did the same steps, showing it to his nose, and getting him to stand up, all with speaking the same little sound. When Hector sat down again, the human fed him another treat. The same steps were repeated 3 more times, then Hector got a thought in his mind. " _So this sound must mean the word 'sit'_ ," he thought.

After the human praised him, she did the same steps for a sound that Hector believed meant "up", the opposite of sit. Hector knew he was getting the hang of it, and was pretty happy to learn some more of the gibberish language of humans.

This went on for about 45 minutes, and over the time, Hector did realize that the sounds sounded similar to what the humans read to him in the books. He knew this was another step he took forward.

Maximus announced that it was time to rotate, and Hector padded up to Chloe, and they joined the other pups as they headed towards the next station, which was to be agility.

After a minute, they saw that in the open part of the play-place, there was a huge obstacle course set up.

The pups got into another line, Tracker standing in front of them.

"Welcome everybody!", Tracker announced. "Are you ready to jump and climb?"

"Yeah!", the pups excitedly answered.

"Excellent!", Tracker announced. He pointed with his tail towards the obstacle course. "I assure you, this will be the best activity of the day."

Hector looked at the obstacles, and got a hint of worry. While it did actually look kind of fun, his size might be a problem.

"Follow me, pups!", Tracker ordered, and as he trotted over to the nearby humans at the obstacle course, all the pups followed, and made a new line to watch.

As Hector got closer to the obstacles, they seemed enormous compared to his size.

"Watch this, everybody!", Tracker announced.

Tracker placed his paws in position in between two poles, and got ready. A nearby human walked up to him, and blew into a whistle. As soon as the whistle was blown, Tracker sped through the obstacle course like lightning, and the pups watched in fascination as he raced, leaped, climbed, turned, and dashed for the finish poles. He finished the course in less than a minute he was so fast. The whistle blew again, and Tracker, still in speed, trotted over to the pups and stopped to catch his breath.

"So...you see...pups...", Tracker instructed as he was catching his breath, "All...you have to do..., is to do...what it looks like...you have to do."

Murmurs of excitement aroused from the pups.

"Now," Tracker went on, trying to top his voice over the excited pups. "I am not expecting speed at the moment. This is for practicing agility, not speed. I did it fast to show you how fast I can do it BECAUSE of all the slow practice I've had."

"Can we still have RACES though?", Buster asked.

"Yeah, come on Tracker!", added Owen.

"We know WE can learn it in a flash!", added Gavin.

"Yes, we can have races, boys," Tracker approved. "But we start slower, got it?"

"Sure," Buster agreed impatiently.

"Okay, now all of you form a line in front of the poles," Tracker ordered the pups.

Tracker trotted over to the middle of the obstacle. The pups formed an almost single file line in front of the poles, and the whistle blew, and the pups were off. Hector was with Chloe at the end of the line, because he didn't want to get trampled over. The pups first sniffed the strange objects, and climbed on top of them. Hector stayed behind Chloe.

The first obstacle was a triangle-shaped hill, red and yellow, that obviously was meant to be climbed over. Chloe dashed up it with the other pups, but Chloe looked back down from the top, and saw Hector was stumbling over the small ridges on the platform. Buster turned around and saw it too.

"Hey, guys!", he called to Owen and Gavin. "Look!"

Owen and Gavin looked at Hector struggling up the hill, and all three of the pups laughed.

"Runt can't even get past obstacle one!", Owen commented, all three still laughing.

Hector gave them an angry look. Chloe padded down the hill, and stood behind Hector. "C'mon, Hector," she urged to Hector gently, pushing him up the hill.

Buster, Owen, and Gavin, walked down the hill, onto the next obstacle.

When Hector was at the top, he easily slid down the other side, Chloe following. The next obstacle was a cut open foot from a monster.

"Now, we jump through this one," Chloe said. She leaped through the foot easily, then looked back at Hector. "Now you try."

Buster, Owen, and Gavin, stayed to watch in amusement.

Hector took several steps back, and ran to the foot and jumped, but didn't make it through, and after dangling from it for a moment, fell off it.

His three brothers laughed hard at him.

"You're too small, Runt. You can't jump through that foot!", Gavin teased.

As they continued giggling, Chloe padded next to Hector. "Just skip this one, Hector," she encouraged him gently.

Hector nodded and continued.

The next obstacle was a purple hurdle, and Hector looked at it nervously.

Seeing Hector deciding to skip this one as well, they continued their laughing.

"Nor this obstacle!", Owen teased.

Chloe gave them a furious look. The next obstacle was a green collapsed tunnel. "Just go through it Hector," she whispered in Hector's ear.

Hector entered inside the tunnel, but as he took his first steps in there, his three brothers ran in and climbed over him. "Ow!", Hector responded.

"Hey!", Chloe angrily scolded the three pups as they pushed their way through the collapsed exit.

Hector followed, Chloe in front of him, helping him get all the way through. When they got out, there was a tall blue fort obstacle. It was about 10 feet high, and had a very steep rough ramp to climb. Buster raced to the top without a problem, Owen and Gavin following, then all three stopping to watch Hector. Chloe felt the rough surface, and dug her claws into it, and climbed up the steep wall. When she made it to the top, brushing next to Buster, she looked back down, and saw Hector struggling to climb it, but he kept falling over and sliding down. Buster, Owen, and Gavin laughed even harder now, almost losing their breath. Two other pups, older then them, who were still on top of the fort came over to see the sight.

"What's going on?", one of the pups asked, amused.

The other pup looked down at Hector still attempting to climb the wall. "Is that Runt?" Both pups joined the laughter.

Hector got so angry he hurt his paw while batting down on the wall in frustration, adding to the laughter of the bullies.

Chloe trotted down to help Hector. She got behind him, and carefully pushed him up it.

The five bullies at the top of the fort were still laughing very hard.

"What's the matter, Runt?", Buster taunted. "You let your sister do all the work for you?"

"You are such a weakling!", one of the older pups added.

"Admit it, Runt!", added Owen. "You don't belong on the obstacle course!"

Hector finally made it to the top with Chloe's help, hot with humiliation.

"Gee, Chloe," Buster asked Chloe in a flirting voice. "Isn't that already getting exhausting dragging your little brother's butt everywhere?"

"SHUT UP, BUSTER! ALL OF YOU!", Chloe yelled furiously at the bullies, defending Hector.

"Ooh, fiesty!", Buster responded, again in a flirting voice. "Buster likey."

Chloe ignored Buster, and helped Hector slide down the slide on the other side. The next obstacle was a bunch of yellow poles standing in a straight line. Tracker was at the next obstacle, which was a red moving plank that had two sides, the side with the pup on it going down while the other went up.

Chloe felt confused with the poles. "Hey, Tracker!", she called to Tracker.

Tracker turned to see Chloe and Hector. "What's up, girl?", he responded.

"What do you do with these poles again?", she asked.

Tracker ran up to her, and demonstrated going in and out of the poles. "Like that!"

"Ah, I get it!", Chloe thanked.

Tracker nodded, and ran across the obstacle course towards the end of it on the other side where other pups were finishing.

Hector and Chloe ran in and out of the poles as Tracker displayed, and then the five bullies followed, doing the same. The seven pups stood in front of the moving plank.

"You go first, Runt," suggested Gavin in a teasing voice.

Hector ran up the plank, luckily without needing a push from Chloe again, but when Hector got to the top, on the tip of the other side of the plank, the plank barely went down at all.

The five bullies laughed again.

"You're too tiny and light to make the plank move down, Runt!", one of the older pups taunted.

"You can't do ANY of these easy stunts, Runt!", Owen added.

"Will you guys just knock it off?", Chloe scolded them angrily.

"Don't worry, little brother," Buster offered. "I'll get you down."

Hector gulped nervously as Buster sped up the plank, immediately letting it down. When it reached the ground, before Hector could get off, Buster hopped off it quickly, and the plank went straight back up, and Hector flew a few feet up in the air, and tumbled down the rest of the plank. Chloe gasped in fright as it happened, and Hector yelped. The bullies continued laughing hard.

When Hector landed in front of Chloe, Chloe was now even more furious. "I'm telling on you, Buster!", she threatened Buster. "I'm telling Tracker right now!"

Hector got up and looked at Buster with fright.

"Go ahead, Chloe," Buster responded with an evil grin, and in a sinister tone. "But you know that MY mother won't care!"

Chloe's jaws dropped wide in shock. Hector's eyes widened at that line. Buster had always bullied him, had always said mean things to him, but NOTHING as bad as that! That had to be the worst thing Buster could ever have said to Hector. Hector was about to cry, but held it back, wiggling his nose.

"Come on, guys," Buster ordered the other bullies. "Let's finish this stupid course."

The bullies all continued on through the course, leaving Hector and Chloe where they still were in shock.

"I cannot believe even HE would say something like that!", Chloe told Hector.

"He may be my brother, but he will NEVER be my friend!", Hector agreed.

"We need to tell Tracker!", Chloe urged, getting ready to trot towards the end of the course.

"No!", Hector stopped Chloe, "Forget about it!"

Chloe looked at Hector with shock. "What?", she asked.

"Buster will never stop torturing me. None of them. It won't make a difference to tattletale!", Hector assured.

"But, Hector...", Chloe started to protest.

"Let's just stop with the agility," Hector immediately changed the subject, slightly angered. "I'm sick of doing it!" Hector turned around, and stomped back towards the starting position without another word.

After the end of this station, was the sniffing station that Deputy was holding.

Once again, the pups all formed a line in front of the coaching dog, and listened for directions.

"All right, everyone!", Deputy began to enthusiastically announce. "Now, as you may know me as, I am a prankster. During my other teams, I was thinking of a big prank that we could pull on the last rotation!"

Mutters of excitement sounded from the other pups. Hector felt apprehensive about a "prank" that probably would not turn out right for him.

"Okay. Here's the plan," Deputy explained the prank. "You see the master standing over there?", Deputy began, pointing his tail towards the master. "He's carrying a whistle, and when we finish this station game ready to rotate a final time, he will blow into it three times. Not in a row, but once to end the game, once to acknowledge the winners, and once to rotate." Deputy turned and pointed his tail towards giant bushes standing 30 feet away. "See those giant bushes?", he asked turning back towards the pups.

The pups nodded in response.

"Now, we will be rotating with the team playing the sports station, at the pools," Deputy went on. "You all know where the pools are. That's the key to our prank. Okay, here's what we're gonna do." Deputy took a moment to be sure all the pups were paying attention. "On the THIRD whistle blow, we will all QUICKLY sneak inside those bushes."

The excited mutters were getting louder.

"A MINUTE after we are inside the bushes, when the rotating team should be here, in FRONT of the bushes," Deputy continued. "We be sure to listen for their pawsteps as well. They look around, confused of where the rotating team is at, since sports is your next station. We get into a ready position, each of you focusing on one of the dogs..."

A few moments of silence made the pups quiet their murmurs.

"I...easily...shout...out...", Deputy continued. "ATTACK!", he yelled in a very loud howl.

All the pups jumped and yipped happily in excitement to that.

"At which point," Deputy explained back in a mellow tone. "We will all leap out of those bushes...and attack."

The pups looked at each other hopefully.

"Boom! You focus on your target dog, and attack him or her...with the BIGGEST bark you've ever barked...What do you guys think?", Deputy finished with a grin full of mischief.

The pups murmured and nodded in agreement. But Hector quieted it down when he rose his paw to ask a question.

Taking notice, Deputy addressed Hector. "Yes...son of Maximus the leader?"

"Hector," Hector corrected him with a dumbfounded look. Hector had been so busy with the reading, isolated from all the other dogs, he guessed, because of that, even Deputy, his father's best friend, just didn't know his name at the top of his head.

"Right," Deputy remembered. "What's wrong?"

"I know you are a leading coaching dog, and claim to be a great prankster too...", Hector began.

"Oh, yes, I know I have my super positions in the pack, as well as my omega-like positions," Deputy agreed.

The other pups gave Hector a baffled stare.

"But, won't yelling "attack" alert the dogs we are going to attack?", Hector asked.

"What?", Deputy replied, chuckling. He thought for a moment, realizing Hector had a point. "Well, I guess you could say that..."

"Don't listen to Runt, Coach Deputy!", Buster called out to Deputy, and his voice sounding as if he did not worry about getting in trouble.

"Yeah, he doesn't know what he's saying!", added an older pup. Other pups around them began to laugh in response.

"Being the smallest dog, means having the smallest BRAIN!", added another older pup. That caused an uproar in the laughter.

"If he was really smart, he would follow YOUR orders! YOUR ideas!", added Gavin. The uproar was even louder now.

Hector trembled, hot with embarrassment.

"HEY!", Deputy yelled furiously to quiet the uproar. "YOU WILL TREAT HIM WITH RESPECT, OR WE ARE NO LONGER PLAYING THIS GAME!"

The laughter began to silence.

"The next pup who says something like that will...", Deputy continued to scold angrily. His voice broke off at the sound of another voice.

"WHAT IS ALL THE RACKET?", the voice yelled, silencing everybody.

Hector looked towards the voice, and it was Bear. The four feral felines were trotting up to Deputy and the pups.

"CATS?", Deputy angrily spat in response. "What are YOU doing here?"

"Well, DOG," Bear spat back. "We are just here to WATCH!"

"We noticed commotion going on, and had nothing better to do!", added Misty.

"Well, I was doing something, actually," said Bella.

"Yeah, SLEEPING I assume!", Deputy argued. "How did you cats get in here this time? No CATS are allowed in here!"

"We CATS are SMARTER than dogs," bragged Bandit. "We can find a way in!"

Deputy growled angrily at the cats. The cats hissed back. Hector could see that Deputy clearly hated cats, and these cats particularly hated Deputy. They continued a short quarrel. As the quarrel ended, Hector could see that it put the bullies' words behind Deputy, making him forget about them.

"Okay, anyway!", Deputy ended the quarrel, attempting to explain the game. "So, are we going to start this game now? Yes, follow me." Deputy immediately trotted away towards a large rock. All the pups followed.

Buster brushed up beside Hector forcefully, almost knocking him over. "You know," Buster told Hector quietly. "Although I don't agree cats are smarter than dogs, I KNOW even the most dimwitted kitten is 10 times more intelligent than you!" Then he slapped Hector's face with his big tail.

"Hey!", Chloe yelled at Buster. "You clump of dung!"

Buster ignored her and kept going.

The pups gathered in front of the rock, as Deputy leaped up on top of it to address them.

"Okay. Do you see these baskets in front of you?", he asked the pups, pointing to the baskets they were standing in front of. "There is one for each of you. You guys should already be familiar with sniffing, so we are starting the game. Around the play-place, there are hidden items that you will need your nose to find. The way to win is to find the most objects, and place them all in your basket. I will be sitting here on this rock, making sure that you are indeed using your own basket, and not stealing any other pups' findings, so don't even think about it. Now this is important: There are 3 mystery items that will be harder to find than the others, but they will be worth 5 objects. They will smell ONLY like a human, which is one reason they will be hard to find, since humans are everywhere. All the objects are either buried, hiding in or behind something, or other. Does everyone understand?"

"Yes!", all the pups agreed.

"This game will last for the remaining station time," Deputy announced. "So is everyone ready?"

"Yeah!", all the pups agreed.

"All right. On your mark, get set, and SNIFF out those treasures!", Deputy howled. The master, approaching Deputy, blew into his whistle, and the game begun.

The pups were all off, heading towards the pools and the playground.

Buster again brushed up against Hector before he went off to join Owen and Gavin. "Runt, you stay out of my way," he threatened Hector. Hector trembled, but tried to ignore him, running off the other direction.

As Hector was running, he thought about where the mystery items might be. He was thinking he should look in an area that the other pups weren't currently searching in, for his sake, but also in an area that seemed less obvious. They shouldn't be in simple locations if they're worth more points than one. If he could find the mystery items, maybe Buster and his friends would be impressed...almost.

Hector paused to sniff the air, and after a minute, he picked up a familiar scent. Hector thought with sudden appreciation of himself that he used human objects so much, that maybe HE could find the mystery items! He followed the familiar scent, and ended up at the fence surrounding the play-place. The familiar scent got stronger, and he went along the fence searching for its source. In one spot, next to a flower, he realized the human-smelling scent was just under his paws! He dug at the dirt quickly, and after a few moments, he came across a pair of the small shiny jingling objects humans used to open the gates up.

" _Wow! A mystery item! And it's the first thing I found!_ ", he thought, proud of himself. He excitedly picked it up in his jaws, looked around to see no other dogs were approaching him, and raced across the open grass back to the basket.

"Coach Deputy! Coach Deputy!", Hector called to Deputy, his voice mumbled, still with the jingling object in his mouth.

Deputy heard him, and turned around to see him, and watched him place an object in the box. Deputy sniffed towards it, and was shocked. "Hector!", Deputy exclaimed. "You found a mystery item? Great work!"

Hector yipped happily, and went off to search for another. He actually managed to find the two other ones as well, not bothering to be too close to the other dogs. The next one was a soft white object humans used when eating, stuck on a branch in a hedge. The third was a circular-shaped object with a hole in its center that humans put into a small box under the "teevee", and it was disguised as a toy hanging on an outward pole on top of a fort on the playground. Hector was exhausted after finding those three objects, and just relaxed next to his basket, while the other pups piled up their findings on their basket, unaware of Hector's findings. Deputy was so impressed with Hector, that he didn't care if Hector stopped. Before they knew it, the whistle was blown, as whistle number one, then whistle number two was also blown.

The humans gathered around the pups and their baskets to see who has won. Buster actually won the game, having found 25 items. A human bent down and petted Buster, and praised him, feeding him a treat. After he got his, all the other pups got a treat as well.

Before Hector, though, the human that first saw that he found all three mystery items first called the other humans to him. All of them looked at the three things, and said something to each other, sounding as if they were astounded with Hector. They all praised him, and petted him. Buster turned towards Hector, seeing that Hector was getting more attention than him, even though HE was the one that won. The humans got up, and walked over to a space, and huddled together to discuss something.

Hector wondered if they were talking about him, seeming so impressed.

Chloe and Deputy padded over to Hector in admiration. "I am so proud of you, Hector!", Deputy praised Hector. "You found all three!"

"How did you do it?", Chloe asked excitedly. "I couldn't sniff out those human fingerprints!"

"Well..." Hector thought for a moment. "There are two things here: one, I use a lot of human objects; and two, more importantly, I guess my nose works really well, considering it was my sight when I was blind."

"Makes perfect sense," agreed Deputy. "And you should do this game with adult sniffers!"

Hector gave an expression of thanks, but it changed to apprehension when he heard an angered voice.

"Hey!", Buster exclaimed, approaching the three dogs. Deputy had not yet congratulated Buster for winning the game.

"Buster," Deputy responded. "I am pretty impressed with you, too."

"I am the one who won!", Buster proclaimed. "I should be getting all the attention!"

"I sniffed out the three mystery items!", Hector bragged.

"Okay, you two, that's enough," Deputy ordered. "You BOTH were amazing." He padded off to have a word to the other pups.

Hector looked at Buster uneasily, and Buster gave him a furious face.

After a few moments, Chloe broke the silence. "Crime doesn't pay, Buster," she told Buster.

Buster growled angrily at Hector.

"Are you not at all impressed with Hector's talent?", Chloe asked Buster.

Buster continued growling at Hector.

"You are just jealous aren't you?", Chloe asked Buster a second question.

Buster bared his teeth at Hector.

"You are too afraid to admit you are as impressed as...", Chloe continued.

"PIPE DOWN, DOLLFACE!", Buster scolded Chloe, and stormed off towards the bushes for the prank.

Before Chloe could say more, or Hector say something as well, the third whistle was blown.

"Everyone, to the bushes!", Deputy ordered all the pups in response, and all the pups obeyed. Hector, feeling happy and proud of himself with this game, was ignoring the bad thought of the prank earlier. He felt he now did something that could impress nearly anyone, so he had nothing to be embarrassed or worried about right now.

After all the pups had hid inside the bush, they waited for the coming dogs.

While Hector was not, Buster was in a spot where he could see out the bush easily. He just thought for a moment that though Hector had asked that question, Deputy never discussed with the team if they were going to yell out "Attack!" or not. He thought he could use this to his advantage.

When Buster saw the rotating dogs approaching, but not close enough yet, Buster yelled out "Attack!", and with the rotating dogs stopping at the strange alarm, Hector took that as the signal, and leaped out of the bush, and barked ferociously, but in high-pitched squeaking sounds, and without another pup in front of him to attack, he tumbled over himself several feet, and hit his head hard on a rock. All the rotating dogs watched the whole thing, and laughed so hard so fast that it took them off their feet.

The other dogs that were hiding in the bushes still, confused if "Attack!" was to be used or not, came out the other end to not be seen, and walked around the bush to the side Hector and the rotating dogs were on.

The rotating dogs were still laughing hard.

Hector got up, and looked at them. He just realized then that Buster was the one who yelled "Attack!". Hector was so in to the sniffing game, he had forgotten about what he had asked Deputy before. He knew Buster did this for revenge on him getting all the attention after the game. Hector felt super hot with embarrassment, humiliation, and he knew that his brief moments of glory were now destroyed.

As the dogs continued to laugh at Hector, Buster padded up to him, and gave him a sinister-looking smile. "You wanted more attention, Hector. NOW YOU REALLY GOT IT!", Buster taunted Hector, then gave Hector a shove that knocked him over. "You're welcome!", Buster added. Buster joined in the laughing, as did Owen and Gavin, after Buster gave them a wink.

Hector, so mortified, so angry, and so uspet from this, before Chloe could reach him, ran off as fast as he could to the gates, which were actually open, and up the hill, and to the currently deserted porch in front of the house, where he stopped and sat in front of the steps, and caught his breath. He picked up several pebbles next to him with his paws, and one by one threw them at the small tree next to the porch furiously. A moment after the last pebble was thrown, Hector began to sob, and broke down crying.

Hector knew that no matter how hard he tried, he would never fit in. " _I will NEVER fit in! NEVER_!", Hector thought as he cried. " _They will never see me as anything more than a tiny odd useless defective runt_!"

Hector continued to cry, while the last rotation went on. He did not want to participate in the last station. There was just no point, and he could not take any more bullying.


	11. A Strange Connection

Hector continued to sob for several minutes. Up in a tall oak tree next to the garden fence, Hugo and Nick were eating some acorns.

"Okay. These taste okay when they are still on the tree, but other than that, acorns are not that great," Nick commented to Hugo.

"I agree," Hugo agreed, swallowing his last acorn.

"I wonder what the walnuts taste like today," Nick wondered.

"Not sure. Let's go to that tree behind the house and find out," Hugo suggested.

"Good idea," Nick agreed.

The two parrots climbed up to the top of the oak tree to take off.

Nick looked down at the porch steps. "Hey! Hugo, look!", he said to Hugo.

Hugo looked where Nick was looking.

"What's that tiny white dot?", Nick asked Hugo.

"I think that's Hector," Hugo answered. "What is he doing here?"

"I thought all the dogs were at the training games," Nick responded.

"Me too," Hugo agreed. "Maybe he just wasn't interested."

"Typical him," Nick remarked.

Hugo looked a little closer. "Gee, I think something's bugging him."

"Let's go talk to him," Nick suggested.

Hugo nodded, and they both slowly flew off the tree, and landed softly in front of Hector on the sidewalk.

Hector barely took notice, as he was covering his face with his paws in his weeping.

"You okay, pup?", Nick asked nervously.

"Go away. Just leave me alone," Hector whimpered.

"What's the matter, pal?", Hugo asked.

"Nothing. I'm fine," Hector whimpered again.

"C'mon, Hector. Something is bothering you," Hugo urged.

"It's not us, is it?", Nick asked.

In a slightly angered response, Hugo gave Nick a shove.

"No," Hector answered in a sad, but also confused voice.

"Then what's going on?", Nick urged.

Hector did not reply.

"How come you're not at the training games?", Nick asked.

Hector still continued his weeping, not wanting to reply.

"Hector, talk to us," Hugo urged.

After several moments of silence, Hector finally replied after catching his breath. "Everyone was making fun of me," he replied.

"Everyone?", Hugo asked.

"Buster and his friends," Hector responded.

"What did they say to you?", Nick asked.

"It doesn't matter," Hector responded. "It's never going to stop."

Hugo and Nick exchanged worried glances at each other.

"Dogs treat me different," Hector remarked.

"Well, you clearly prefer having the company of humans than with your own kind," Hugo stated.

"You're not like other dogs, Hector," Nick added. "You're...different."

"A defective runt?", Hector responded in sad and reluctant agreement. "Yes, I know."

"No, no, no," both parrots disagreed together.

"You're SPECIAL," Hugo stated.

"There's nothing wrong with being different," Nick added. "You are a unique, incredibly intelligent individual."

"Other pups may not see that," Hugo added.

"I've tried to fit in today, but I just can't," Hector stated.

"Well, you don't really want to spend the rest of your day here sobbing, do you?", Nick asked.

Hector gave the birds a lonely look.

After a few moments, Hugo finally spoke again. "You know what, Hector? Speaking of training, I do remember how a long time ago, the humans used to spend a, weird time, where some human pups came to play with the dogs. The human pups were learning how to read in the process. They were reading to the dogs while the dogs listened."

Hector's ears perked, and his expression turned into wonder. "Really?", he asked.

"Oh, yeah, I remember that!", Nick remembered. "The humans were also using these videos on a TV to tutor the human pups."

"Videos?", Hector asked. "What's a video?"

"A video is something you can watch on a TV," Hugo answered. "In fact, the humans might still have some of them stuffed somewhere."

Hector felt sudden excitement rushing through him. The sadness he was feeling was going away. "Do you two think you can find them?", he asked hopefully.

Hugo and Nick looked at each other with curious faces. They both tilted their head in wonder.

"I bet I know where they could be," Hugo remarked.

"You do?", Hector asked excitedly. "Where?"

"Follow me," Hugo instructed.

The two birds and Hector went into the house through the flap, and Hugo led the way to a staircase.

"The videos are probably stored in the basement," Hugo stated.

"Basement?", Hector asked.

"Yeah. That's what the underground room is called. You've been down here before, right?", Nick responded.

"I've played with something that makes cool sounds, like the piano," Hector remembered.

"You must be referring to the drum set," Hugo stated.

"Well, go ahead," Nick invited Hector.

Hector carefully made his way down the wooden stairs, while Hugo and Nick flew down to the bottom, and waited for him. When Hector reached the bottom, he could recognize the particularly chilly area of the house. The room was completely dark, and Hector knew for sure he hadn't been back down here, because he was blind and oblivious of the dark room when he was last playing with the "drum set".

Hector watched Hugo fly up and peck a small button on the wall next to the stairs. In an instant, the whole basement was lit up.

"What is that thing on the wall?", Hector asked.

"It's a lightswitch," Hugo answered. "When you press it, it activates a room's lights."

"Oh," Hector responded in understanding.

"And over there," Hugo added. "Is what the drum set is." Hugo pointed across the room with his beak.

Hector saw where the "drum set" was, next to a line of several big boxes. The walls were wooden, the floor concrete, and there was not much decoration. Dust, cobwebs, and tiny dirty pebbles covered the floor, especially in the corners and along the big boxes.

The two parrots and Hector walked across the cold floor, towards a set of shelves.

"This place is disgusting," Nick commented, after accidentally stepping into a cobweb, shaking it off his foot.

"Okay, Hector," Hugo stated. "Those videos should be in one of those boxes up there." Hugo pointed with a wing towards a few high shelves bordered with the the wall, and the top also with the ceiling. They had medium-sized boxes with language markings on them. "Now, Nick," Hugo ordered Nick, "You go search on the top shelf, while I'll start searching on the middle shelf."

Nick nodded in agreement, and both birds flew up onto the shelves, their wings blowing some dust around. Hector sneezed in response.

As Nick was quickly rummaging through the boxes, he was making a fountain of white solid peanut-shaped flakes over Hugo and Hector. Hector shook some off of him.

"Hey...Nick...", Hugo exclaimed impatiently to Nick, spitting small ones out of his mouth. "We're drowning down here!"

"Quit your squawking and keep looking!", Nick responded to Hugo, immediately going back to making such a rainfall.

"Nick, you don't need to...," Hugo exclaimed again to Nick, shaking them off his plumage, "...look that fast! You're making a mess!"

"Ah, shut up," Nick argued with Hugo. "This room was already as filthy as a dirt-place!"

Hector giggled in response to the silly argument with a smile, despite he was crying only minutes before now.

After another minute, Hugo noticed a familiar touch with his beak in one of the boxes. "Oh, I think I...", he began to state.

"Found one!", Nick finished for Hugo in singsong, also seemily finding a video.

Hugo displayed an expression of irritance, and sighed in annoyance.

"This box has some old dusty videos in it! Maybe they are the ones we're looking for!", Nick exclaimed.

"I found some too...", Hugo stated.

"Well, then, let's begin viewing them!", Nick exclaimed again.

"Let's just place a mark on these two boxes, then," Hugo suggested. "They're too heavy to take down. We can try one video at a time, but with the old TV down here. This might take a while, and we don't want the humans to see us..."

"There's one down here, too?", Hector asked.

"Yes," Hugo answered. "It should be behind those boxes over there." Hugo pointed with his beak to a big pile of boxes farther down the room.

Hugo and Nick both scratched a big mark on their boxes, and both grabbed a video out of their boxes, and flew over, holding them with their feet, to where Hugo had said the old TV was. Hector quickly followed.

When Hector reached the TV, he watched Hugo pick up the spiky end of a black cord attached to the TV in his beak, and neatly insert it into a small hole in the wall close to the floor.

"What is that for?", Hector asked.

"The TV won't turn on unless it's plugged into the wall through this cord," Hugo explained.

Hector nodded. He looked down at the "videos", and realized they looked quite similar to one of the mystery items he found during the sniffing challenge game.

"What exactly are these objects called?", Hector asked.

"DVDs, I think," Hugo answered.

"Deeveedee?", Hector replied, slowly pronouncing it.

"Yes," Hugo agreed. "And they go into this little slit inside the TV." There were two slits under the TV's screen, one larger than the other. Hugo was pointing to the smaller one.

"Wait a minute," Hector stopped to think, "Aren't these what humans place into a BOX UNDER a TV?"

"Sometimes," Hugo responded. "The TV up there has a box where you put it in instead. This TV is older."

"Oh," Hector responded.

"Let's do mine, first!", Nick demanded.

"Whatever," Hugo replied.

Hugo bent down, and carefully used the sharp end of his beak to open the little container the DVD was sitting in. He looked at the DVD, and thought for a moment as Nick pressed a button that turned the TV on, and then another that opened the small slit, releasing a platform with the DVD's shape. "Hector, why don't you place it in?", Hugo asked Hector.

"Me?", Hector replied. "Why?"

"Because us parrots have very sharp beaks and claws," Hugo explained. "It'd be better if you did it. The DVDs would get damaged easily and quickly."

"Oh, okay!", Hector agreed approvingly.

"Just place it carefully with your paw on the small slit's platform," Hugo instructed. "Be sure the colored side is facing up."

Hector nodded, and picked the DVD up with one of his paws. He gently placed the DVD into the platform where it fit perfectly, and pressed the same button Nick had pressed, and it brought the platform back into the TV.

"Good," Hugo approved.

They waited for a few moments, but nothing else appeared on the screen.

"Hugo, what's going on?", Hector asked Hugo.

"I think we missed a step," Hugo answered. "Where's the remote?", Hugo asked Nick.

Nick looked around, and spotted it sitting on a small table behind the TV. "Oh, there it is," Nick stated, flying over there to get it, and bring it over.

"Remote?", Hector asked Hugo.

"It's that odd little box that humans use to control what's on the TV," Hugo replied.

"Oh, so that's what it's called," Hector responded. "Is it supposed to be remote from the TV?", he added, with a mischievious smile.

Hugo chuckled in response. "Usually it's right next to the TV. Nice wordplay," Hugo answered, approving of Hector's clever pun.

Hector giggled, proud of the pun he just said.

"Okay," Nick stated, placing the remote down. "One of these buttons will turn the video on, but which one?", he wondered.

Hugo looked at the remote's buttons. "Maybe you have to change the TV's channel. Try that up and down one," he suggested, pointing to one of the longer buttons.

Nick clicked it with a claw, and as suggested, something popped up on the screen. On the screen it showed several dogs playing with the humans. After watching for a few moments, Nick finally spoke. "I don't think this is what we're looking for," he stated.

Hector looked closer at it. "Is that Max?"

"Could be," Nick agreed, as he pressed the button to open the platform back up. "But let's go and keep looking for the right videos."

Hector took out the DVD, and placed it back in the container. Nick grabbed it with his foot, and carried it back to the box, while Hector placed in the next one.

The next video was what looked like humans eating outside at night next to a bonfire, sitting on logs, next to napping dogs. Again, Hector noticed his father in the video. The next video Nick got had Maximus in it as well, and so did the next one.

"Why is Max in all of these videos?", Hector asked. "They are different events, I can tell."

"Max is the leader of the other dogs. He's the secondary alpha after the master," Hugo explained. "Everyone on the farm knows Max very well."

"Right," Hector agreed, sounding as if he felt he asked a stupid question.

The next video finally appeared to be what they were looking for. It was showing several human pups reading to the farm's dogs.

"This must be it!", Hector exclaimed. "Didn't you say there was teaching in these videos, too?"

"There should be," Hugo stated. "Maybe we should try one of those rainbow-colored DVDs in my box."

Hector took out the DVD, placed it back in the container, and Hugo traded it for one of the rainbow DVDs, and brought it over, Hector placing it in.

As predicted, it did indeed have the videos of teaching.

"This is it," Nick responded.

Hector watched it in fascination. On the screen, there were several examples of reading markings that a human in it was reading! Hector put his full attention on it. Each marking or few markings in the example appeared to be highlighted as the female human in there read it. As Hector has figured out through reading with the humans, the snake-shaped marking sounded like a snake. The marking that represented a criss-cross seemed to never be the first marking in the examples. An example often had the marking that looked just like an obstacle from the course. Two markings appeared to be the same shape, just one is vertical, while the other is horizontal. As more and more examples were appearing on the screen being slowly read to Hector, Hector felt he had found a better way to learn to read the markings. He was very thankful for the parrots, as he may never have known about this learning technique if it hadn't been for them.

"So, the humans have tried training you to read before?", Hector asked the parrots.

"Yeah," Nick responded, both parrots nodding.

"Just small specific quotes," Hugo added. "Nothing too big."

"Not that we are too fluent in reading, but...", Nick added.

"You know a key I learned to reading?", Hugo added.

"What?", Hector replied.

"When they were teaching us, they would give us the certain markings, then place a picture next to them, presumably what it means," Hugo explained.

"The hard part was only some of the objects were objects we knew. The first step was to know the names of basic human objects. Which we have learned," Nick added.

"So, it was more like you guys were trying to memorize certain marking patterns, not certain markings?", Hector asked.

"I guess you could say that," Nick answered.

"Well, I want to learn ALL the markings and the patterns both!", Hector declared.

"I'm just in suggestion that that could be a tough goal," Nick responded.

"Well, I just know that I was BORN to read!", Hector proudly stated. "I learn all there is to reading, and that is where my life really begins!"

Hugo and Nick looked at each other with puzzled and almost shocked expressions.

"What's wrong?", Hector asked, taking notice.

Both birds showed the expressions to him.

"What?", Hector asked again.

After a few moments of silence, Hugo finally spoke. "You are indeed a unique dog, Hector."

"You said that wasn't a bad thing," Hector remarked to them.

"It's not," both Hugo and Nick stated at the same time.

"It's just not dog-like to read, that's all," Nick added.

"What are you two really trying to say?", Hector asked, slightly concerned.

"When you said 'the bullying will never stop'...," Hugo remarked, "...well...it just worries me that if you pursue these intellectual interests all your life..."

"They will still bully me when I'm an adult?", Hector tried to finish the statement.

"We don't want you living in a life of abuse," Nick warned.

"Well," Hector argued, "I am willing to risk that if that's what I have to go through to reach that goal, and the goals after that."

"The choices you are making now, Hector, can affect your entire future," Hugo assured.

"We are proud of you," Nick added. "Just very concerned, too."

"What if I become the new leader after my father?", Hector suggested. "Maybe they won't give me trouble, then!"

After exchanged worried glances at each other, Hugo and Nick looked at Hector with uncertainty. "We don't know who will be the next leaders after Max and Daisy, Hector," stated Hugo, "The answer will come in time."

"What if I asked Dad if I could be the new leader?", Hector asked.

"I wouldn't ask Max that if I were you, Hector," Nick warned.

"Why not?", Hector asked.

"Just don't," Hugo warned also. "It is a very honorable position to have. I am sure that role has to be earned, not asked for."

"Oh," Hector responded, not sure what to make of that. He immediately changed the subject. "Well, can I just get back to these videos?", he asked the birds.

"Of course," Hugo replied. "Nick," he ordered Nick, "Let's go grab more of those rainbow DVDs."

Nick nodded, and both birds flew back over to the box, and grabbed four more of the rainbow DVDs, and brought them to Hector.

"I think Nick and I should go back upstairs. The humans should be ending that event, and be coming back any minute now," Hugo told Hector.

"Okay," Hector responded.

"If your parents ask, we'll tell them you're down here," Hugo added.

Hector nodded, and turned to continue watching his videos. The two parrots flew back upstairs, careful not to bump into anything. As Hector continued to watch, pictures were actually being shown, and he was excited that learning to read was seemingly getting even easier. He decided that this was what he was to do for the rest of the day. No reason Buster and his friends would come down here in the cold dirty room looking for him.

Hector was thinking for several moments what the birds really were trying to tell him in an indirect way. They seemed to be trying to make a connection between his odd interests and a possible future position for him on the farm. " _What would it take for me to become the next leader_?", Hector thought. He then remembered something Ranger and Tracker had said a while back. Ranger and Tracker told him that he would likely be betrothed to Chloe in the future, then he and Chloe would become the new leaders. But that was before he got his new hobby. Either way, Hector did wonder if there was a coming connection to him having such odd interests and becoming leader. Was something big going to happen? Something because of who he is? Something so life-changing, that it would affect his entire future? And what would Chloe have to do with it? After all that happened this day, it seemed pretty clear his future was not going to be the same as the other pups, no matter what it turned out to be. Hector shrugged off his strange confusing thoughts, and continued with his hobby. " _What will my future really turn out to be_?", Hector wondered.


	12. The Nightmare

Hector felt a very chilling breeze surge through him. He was asleep, but now slowly, he woke up at the sudden cold. As he opened his eyes, he could feel the icy cold floor beneath him, making him shiver. He was sure it was the cold basement floor, but when he looked around, he could not see anything. Not the TV, not the boxes, and not even the blankets and bed he was sleeping in was there.

RED! The only thing Hector could see was the color red! All around him, was the solid color of red. There weren't even black edges to this room. The whole cold place was just the color of solid red. Hector was still his own white color, but other than him, was RED! EVERYWHERE! He could not even make out it being a room. It was impossible to see where it ended, as if it had no ending at all.

It was completely quiet. As Hector got up, and walked several steps through the red unknown, he still could not hear a thing! Not even his paws made a tiny sound as they touched a flat ground. " _What is this place_?", Hector wondered.

After 2 minutes of complete silence, Hector froze as he heard a quick faint sound. He gasped in fright. Right after the sound, Hector kept all his senses alert. Another several moments of silence went by, and he heard something again, this time, louder and closer. It sounded like a male human whistling a tune. The whistling was very eerie. Hector sniffed around for human scent, but he could not smell anything. There did not seem to be a human around, yet he could hear the creepy whistling of one coming closer and closer to him. Hector's heart started to race, and he began to shake with fear. Having someone, or something, walking towards him, and not being able to see it, was very frightening.

After a few more moments, the whistling stopped. After a brief moment, the solid red color faded into solid black. It was now fully black all around him, nothing to be seen still. Hector got more scared as the place he was in now was all black. Another few moments of silence went by, and Hector was shivering, because of the freezing place, and because he was so scared. The silence was broken again, as he heard the sound of a door slowly creaking open, in the same direction the whistling had stopped. It was as if the invisible human walked to the door to the room Hector was in, and opened it. Yet Hector saw nothing. Suddenly, he heard another door open behind him. He gasped, and spun around, expecting to see something, but there was nothing there. Just the endless darkness.

A moment after, Hector heard what sounded like footsteps of two humans walking on a wooden floor. The "humans" were walking right next to him, but he still saw nothing, and did not smell any human scent, either. Hector ducked down, and placed his paws over his face. He knew something was there, and it was really spooking him.

The footsteps stopped after a minute, and another few moments of silence went by. The freezing cold room now began to get extremely hot. Hector's paws suddenly felt like they were on fire. The sound of a wailing, frightened, and tortured pup sounded all around him, very loudly. With it, an even louder sound, something like thunder, repeated several times. Hector jumped up, panting in terror, and spun around a few times, and still saw absolutely nothing. The terrifying sounds echoed through the darkness, and after a minute, angered barking from two adult dogs running towards him joined the noise, and then the sounds of glass windows shattering to pieces after that. All those loud noises continued to scream all around him, next to him, and even right in his ears, in the total darkness, for another 2 minutes. Hector was so terrified, he closed his eyes, and muttered "No, no, no, no, no...", wanting it to stop.

All of a sudden, something touched him, saying his name, and immediately after, he jumped up, and opened his eyes again, and found himself laying in the bed he was sleeping in. Panting, still frightened, he looked up and saw Daisy staring down at him in shock.

"Hector, Hector, calm down, sweetie, it's just me!", Daisy tried to calm Hector down, holding him with a paw.

Hector slowly calmed down, realizing he was back in the basement, the TV next to him still on, teaching and showing reading markings, and he was back to being cold.

"Did you have a bad dream?", Daisy asked.

"Oh...Mom...", Hector sighed, relieved it indeed was only a dream. "There was darkness, wailing, thunder, footsteps...", Hector described, trying to catch his breath.

"It was only a nightmare, dear," Daisy assured in a calming voice. "Settle down."

"I...", Hector remarked. "I guess I fell asleep."

"I came down here looking for you," Daisy responded. "It's the middle of the night, and you haven't come back to the barn yet. It's too cold for you to sleep down here."

Hector nodded in agreement, shivering at having to fall asleep in the basement, even though he was pretty used to this room now.

"Let's go," Daisy told Hector, shutting the TV off, and then leaning down and picking him up gently with her jaws. She carried him upstairs, and to their nest. She placed him next to Chloe, and layed down next to Maximus, going back to sleep.

Hector yawned sleepily. It had been two weeks after Hugo and Nick showed him the videos, and that is what he was doing pretty much all day every day. By now, Hector had learned to read lots of marking patterns. He felt he was just about ready to read a book himself! His mind was all filled up with reading, and basically nothing else, for the past two weeks. Where that dream came from, he had no idea. There was no explanation for having that bad dream. But Hector was tired right now, and wanted to go back to sleep. He fell back asleep rather quickly, fortunately without any more nightmares.

The next morning, Hector, and several other pups, were taken to the vet for shots and a check-up. Later that day, when they returned, Hector was starting to think more about that nightmare.

The pups were all unloaded from the monster onto the black sticky stinky ground where it fell quickly asleep. Hector and Chloe walked into the nearby grass.

"I feel a little sore from all the shots," Chloe remarked. "What about you?"

"Yeah...", Hector agreed. "But it's for our own good."

"Do you want to take a break from that hobby of yours, today?", Chloe asked hopefully.

Hector thought for a moment about that nightmare. "You know what, Chloe?", he asked.

"What?"

"There's something I might want to talk to you about..."

"What is it?"

"Well...it's not too big of a deal, but..."

"Hey!", Olivia called to Chloe, interrupting. "Are you coming, Chloe?"

"Let's go play!", Sadie added.

Chloe turned towards her sisters. While Hector was busy learning reading all this time, she had been playing with Olivia and Sadie a lot.

Chloe turned back towards Hector. "Hector, do you wanna play with us?", she asked him.

"Uh...", Hector shrugged. "What are you playing?"

Olivia and Sadie padded over to them. "Predator vs. Prey!", Sadie responded.

"Connor said he's going to be the predator this time!", Olivia added.

"What's that game?", Hector asked.

Before Olivia and Sadie could question him regardless of his ignorance, Chloe quickly answered. "It's where there is one 'predator' pup, while the other pups are the 'prey' that can be 'eaten' by the 'predator'. The 'prey' go and hide, and the 'predator' hunts for them, finding them, and chasing them until they are caught."

Hector gave his three sisters an uncertain look.

"It's really fun!", Chloe assured him.

"Well, for a pup your size...", Olivia began to remark irritably.

"It would probably not be...", Sadie added.

"Are you playing or not?", Chloe quickly asked Hector.

Hector continued his stare.

"What's going on?", Connor asked, padding up to them. "Are we heading to the playground or not?" He turned towards Hector, and Hector returned the confused look. "Why are you girls talking to Runt?"

"Because Chloe here thinks the little half pint might actually bother to do something NORMAL for once," Sadie responded.

"Not his lame flea-brained usual activity," Olivia added.

"Guys!", Chloe responded angrily to those comments. "I'm not going to play if you are going to keep..."

"Fine, you can play, Hector," Connor impatiently remarked. "I don't care. But it'll be RISKY for YOU!"

Hector sighed. "Well...I guess I can try...", he reluctantly agreed.

"Let's go then!", Connor urged. He, Olivia, and Sadie raced towards the play-place before Chloe could say more.

Chloe turned towards Hector. "What was it you wanted to tell me about anyway?"

Hector decided this wasn't a good time. "It can wait," he assured.

"Okay, let's catch up, then," Chloe suggested.

Hector nodded, and both pups followed their siblings to the playground. They all gathered together, and began the game in an open spot in the grass.

"Okay," Connor instructed. "I count to 60, and all of you make a run for it." Connor covered his eyes with his paws, and began to count to 60.

Sadie, Olivia, and Chloe turned and ran to the nearby forts to find a hiding spot. Hector joined in, knowing he understood the basic idea of this game. Hector ran across the grass, and glanced around for a good hiding spot. He focused his gaze on a nearby pair of pine trees. He raced over to them, and went underneath them. He felt the prickle of their fallen leaves in the mud under his paws, and stepped into a small ditch. Being as small as he was, Hector thought this would make a very good hiding place. He hopped into the middle, and then lined himself up to the side of the ditch, the side where he thought Connor would walk in from.

A few minutes went by, and Hector heard someone running towards him. Thinking it was Connor, he settled himself deep into the dirt, and held his breath. When the pup stood on the other side of the ditch, Hector looked, and saw that it was Chloe.

"Hector!", she exclaimed quietly. "Connor's right behind me! Come on!", she urged.

Hector got up, and followed Chloe as she ran out from underneath the pine trees. While they both approached a nearby fort a few moments later, Chloe jumped up and quickly climbed the steps to the top. Hector spun around, detecting Connor's presence. Hector saw Connor, and Connor spotted him, and chased after him. Hector leaped up onto the steps after Chloe, and hurried up them as fast as he could. By the time Hector made it to the top, Connor was at the bottom, and beginning to climb. Hector ran across the fort to a slide on the other end, and slid down it, tumbling over when he reached the bottom. He then sprinted away across the grass, but looking back, Connor was right behind him.

Hector gasped, and tried to speed up. Connor had not reached the top, and seemed to have known exactly where Hector was going. Hector wasn't sure where he was running too, and before he had time to think of it, Connor caught up to him. Connor, being bigger than him, was much faster.

"I gotcha!", Connor exclaimed, as he pounced on Hector. The two pups wrestled over each other, until Connor ended it, and pinned Hector to the ground on his back. He then laughed sinisterly. "You're dead, Runt!"

Hector struggled to break free, but couldn't. Connor was stronger than him.

"You were TOO EASY to catch!", Connor taunted. "You're too small!"

Hector growled defensively.

"And you're obviously WAY out of practice!", Connor added.

Chloe, Olivia, and Sadie padded up to them. "You won, Chloe!", Connor congratulated Chloe. "You're the prey that got away!"

"Okay, Connor," Chloe responded. "I'm happy I won, but will you please let go of him?"

"What's going on here?", another pup asked, approaching them, Connor still having Hector pinned down to the ground.

Hector looked at who it was, and it was Buster, Owen, and Gavin. He sighed in humiliation.

The three bullies laughed at the sight. "Good job, Connor!", Owen happily approved, "Runt doesn't know who he's really dealing with!"

"You sure showed him how SMALL and WEAK he is!", Buster added.

"What are YOU GUYS doing here?", Chloe asked, angered. "We're..."

"Playing Predator vs. Prey, I presume?", Buster finished for her. He focused on Connor. "Connor, I don't know why you're bothering playing with Runt. He's too easy to catch!"

"That's what I just said," Connor responded.

"Will you just LET GO of him!", Chloe furiously yipped at Connor.

Connor, not wanting to argue with her, let go of Hector, and took a few steps back.

"Was this a set-up, Connor?", Hector demanded Connor.

"Hey!", Connor responded in an amused but assertive tone. "Don't look at me. I TOLD you that this would be RISKY!"

"I KNEW THAT!", Hector protested.

"You tell him, Connor," Gavin insisted Connor. "He's too busy with his flea-brained marking dung to know how to do ANYTHING!"

"It's called READING!", Hector protested.

"WHATEVER!", Gavin argued.

"And it happens to be an intellectual...", Hector protested.

"PIECE OF DUNG!", Owen finished for him.

"WILL YOU GUYS ALL SHUT UP?", Chloe scolded furiously at the bullies.

Buster gave Chloe a smile. "YOU shut up, doll-face!", he argued with Chloe, in a flirty voice. Buster walked up to her, and brushed up against her. "You can't just keep defending him, Chloe!", he insisted her. "You should be paying attention to IMPORTANT things. Like ME!", he added in a flirty and possessive tone.

"Hey!", Chloe began to protest.

"C'mon, gorgeous!", Buster playfully gently shoved her. "You know you'd rather spend time with ME!"

"Buster!", Chloe continued to protest.

Buster licked her cheek affectionately. "The MALE should be BIGGER than the FEMALE!"

"Buster, QUIT IT!", Chloe angrily scolded.

Hector did not like this one bit. "LEAVE HER ALONE!", Hector tried to defend her, and trying to sound serious through his high-pitched yip.

Buster paused, twitched his ears, and turned around, and looked at Hector with an evil-looking grin. "Did you...SAY something to ME, RUNT?", he threatened Hector.

Buster slowly approached Hector, his face turning furious and threatening. Hector ducked down and gulped nervously, now scared. "Uh...I...uh...", he stammered.

Buster leaned down, and went face to face with him with a mad face.

"Um...y...yes...I DID say something...", Hector tried to get his words out. "Uh...LEAVE HER ALONE!", he tried to sound serious again.

Buster gritted his teeth.

"...Please?", Hector softly responded, with a nervous smile, backing away.

"Are you TRYING to get yourself in trouble?", Buster asked in a demeaning voice. "SHUT UP, RUNT!"

Hector snapped angrily, swiping one paw across Buster's muzzle, scratching him. Buster yelped at the sudden pain, and pawed at the spot.

The other pups all watched in almost horror. Buster turned and fixed a furious gaze at Hector. "You don't know when to quit, do you?", he threatened him.

Hector immediately regretted what he did. "Uh..."

"OH, you wanna SPAR, do you?", Buster invited sinisterly. "Let's do it!"

Buster lunged at Hector, and Hector flopped over on his back. "No, no, no, no! I wasn't asking for any trouble!", Hector protested, frightened.

"No, really," Buster insisted him. "Right now! Just you and ME!"

"No!", Hector responded.

"BUSTER!", Chloe furiously yipped at Buster.

Buster ignored her, and pinned Hector to the ground. "Just a little friendly competition," he sinisterly insisted.

After a moment of hesitation, Buster insisted again. "Go on! BITE ME!"

Just as Buster was about to bite Hector's nose, someone called for him in the distance.

"Buster!", the voice called.

Buster perked his ears, and looked towards the voice, and saw that it was his mother, Mary. He sighed, irritated. "Coming, Mother!", he called back patiently.

"Owen, Gavin, you too!", Mary called again.

Buster quickly turned back his attention on Hector, still having him pinned to the ground. "We will have this fight later, then, won't we, RUNT?", he asked Hector quietly, in a demeaning voice.

"BUSTER!", Mary called to Buster again.

"I'M COMING!", Buster called to Mary again, impatiently. Buster reluctantly let go of Hector, and he, along with Owen and Gavin, raced up to their mother. The other pups watched and listened.

"What is going on?", Buster asked Mary angrily.

"Some humans were looking for you three," Mary told them. "Probably something about the vet."

Buster groaned, irritated at the interruption.

Hector got up, and turned towards Chloe.

"Jerks!", Chloe remarked. She turned her head towards Connor. "You're one, too, Connor!"

Connor just shook his head in response, and laid down. The other pups did as well.

After several moments of silence, Chloe finally spoke. "Hector?", she asked Hector. "Why don't you tell us the story you had to share?"

Hector sighed. He looked at Connor, Olivia, and Sadie, and wasn't sure if they should hear it. But, he decided it didn't matter, since they already thought he was insane.

Chloe gave Hector an urging look on her face.

"Well...", Hector began to explain. "I had a nightmare last night. I have no idea where it came from, but it was terrifying."

"What was it about?", Olivia asked.

"Not exactly sure," Hector replied.

"What made it a scary dream?", Sadie asked.

"There was a certain feeling to it," Hector described. "As if it was real."

"What was IN the dream?", Connor asked.

"Not for sure about that, either, because I was completely blind in it," Hector replied. "I saw nothing. I could only hear shrieking of terror, angry snarling, and the creepiest sounds that gave me chills. Not to mention being in a cold space, turning into hot."

The pups all looked at each other, baffled.

"I've heard that some dogs here have special dreams, Hector," Olivia remarked. "Dreams that have a significant meaning behind them."

"Even though they weren't real," Sadie added.

"But what could a SCARY dream mean?", Hector asked, half to himself.

"It's probably trying to warn you of something, Hector," Connor remarked.

"Yeah," Chloe agreed. "And I've also heard that a few lucky dogs experience odd dreams."

"But what are the chances that scary dream meant anything?", Hector stated. "Everybody has had many bad dreams before. How could this one be any different?"

"You probably should ask someone who knows more about this, Hector," Chloe suggested. "But why would you have asked about the dream if you didn't feel it had more to it?"

Hector shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know...", he said with uncertainty.

After a few more moments of silence, some humans walked by, and offered a ball to the pups.

"I'm gonna go play," Connor responded, and padded up to the humans.

"Me, too," Sadie agreed.

"Me, too," Olivia also agreed.

"I think I will, too," Chloe reluctantly agreed. "What about you, Hector?", she asked Hector.

Hector gave her a confused look.

"Oh, right," Chloe remembered how Hector did not like playing fetch. "Well, see ya!"

Chloe joined the other pups and began the game of fetch. Hector decided he needed to talk to someone who might know more about odd dreams. He wondered if his wise grandfather, Sebastian, might know something more. He obviously had a significant dream before, right? Hector headed back to the barn, and snoozing in the straw and hay was Sebastian.

"Sebastian!", Hector woke Sebastian up.

Sebastian blinked open his eyes, and yawned, seeing his grandson. "Hector...what's wrong?", he asked Hector.

"I have to tell you something," Hector urged.

"Okay," Sebastian agreed. "What happened?"

Hector told Sebastian his terrifying dream from last night. Throughout the story, Sebastian's eyes were widened in shock.

"Do you think that dream might mean something?", Hector finished. "It's just that I have no idea where it came from. It came from out of nowhere."

Sebastian thought about it for a few moments. "Well, Hector," he explained. "Some dogs here, including me, have had very special dreams that were sent to them."

"Sent?", Hector asked, confused.

"Yes," Sebastian explained. "From the ancestors."

"Ancestors?"

"Yes. The spirits of dogs who have lived before sometimes send a very important message through a dream. They may visit you in a dream, or they may give a symbolic metaphor."

"Are you saying that this dream might have been a message?"

"Maybe. Maybe not. You probably won't know until...", Sebastian paused.

"Until what?", Hector urged nervously.

Sebastian stayed silent for a few moments. "That dream might be telling you that something bad is going to happen," Sebastian warned. "It could be trying to warn you."

"Warn me?"

"Yes. That in the future, an event that has elements from this dream might happen."

"That sounds really scary."

"It probably meant nothing, Hector. I have had the scariest nightmares ever, and nothing like them ever happened."

Hector nodded. He felt a little frightened that this dream might have been a message.

The two dogs talked for a few more minutes, then Hector decided to go and get a drink from the water bowl while Sebastian returned to his snoozing. Hector felt shivers crawling down his spine. " _Is that nightmare going to come true? Is something super scary, very bad, going to happen? Was this just an ordinary bad dream, or is there a deeper and darker meaning behind it? And WHY was this dream given to ME? It must have something to do with ME! If a bad event really is coming, would I be a significant cause of it_?", Hector thought, frightened. " _What could this dream have been trying to tell me or warn me about_?" Hector tried to shake off the eerie feelings and not worry about the bad dream. After all, it probably meant nothing. Hector ignored his apprehension, and went through the rest of the day without even thinking about the dream.


	13. A Plan For Trouble

It was almost sunset, a few days after Hector had that nightmare. Hector had just finished eating the yucky solid food he now had to eat four times a day. He took several sips of water, and trotted out the kitchen, and into the center of the next room. Maximus was resting on the soft carpet with his head laying down on a "pillow" from the "sofa", the human words translated from Hector's knowledge.

"I don't like eating this stuff," Hector stated, irritated.

"You mean the puppy chow?", Maximus responded, amused.

"Yeah," Hector replied. "But if this is just puppy food, then..."

"Then you switch to dog chow."

"Yeah, but...that tastes better, right?"

"Your opinion is the answer to that question, son."

"It tastes the same, doesn't it?", Hector asked, disappointed.

"Well, it could depend on the type," Maximus explained. "Some chow taste different than other chow. Dogs have personal preferences."

"You're saying you LIKE the chow?"

"It doesn't matter if I like it or not, Hector. All dogs have to eat it for life."

"For LIFE? Why?"

"There are plenty of human foods dogs shouldn't eat."

"Like what?"

"How would I know what they're called?"

"Oh."

"But," Maximus began to chuckle. "If you really want to try a human food, then beg the humans for one. They might let you eat something."

"Can I do that right now? I think they're eating, too, right now," Hector asked.

"I wouldn't if I were you," Maximus warned, but with amusement.

"Why?"

"Because once you try a human food, you will get stuck with a bad habit of begging for more, I assure you."

"You have tried human food before, right?"

"Yes," Maximus chuckled. "Their meat food is very tasty."

"Meat?", Hector asked, shocked. "WE are natural predators, and we can't eat meat unless we beg for it?"

"You know," Maximus remarked. "There is a meat of some sort in your chow."

"Yeah," Hector chuckled sarcastically. "Not meat I'd wanna eat."

"What are you two going on about?", another voice in the room interrupted the conversation. Hector and Maximus turned to see who it was. It was Cocoa, and he was climbing on top of the large window sill. The window sill was thin, and had solid images of humans and dogs laying on it, as well as glass figures. The window was too high for Hector to see out of it from the floor.

"How did you get up there?", Maximus asked Cocoa.

Cocoa, in response, pointed his tail towards a very high "chair" standing next to the window sill. "On that human object," Cocoa replied. Cocoa looked out the window, and spotted a pair of squirrels running around. He laughed. "There are a pair of squirrels chasing each other over a stupid acorn by the oak tree." He turned his head towards them. "So, what were you arguing about?", he asked them.

"Dad says we have to eat chow for the rest of our life," Hector answered.

Cocoa groaned angrily in response. "I hate chow."

"Just part of life, son," Maximus replied. "When you live with humans, you have to eat chow."

"What's so great about living with humans anyway, then," Cocoa scoffed in response. He looked back outside the window at the squirrels, and saw one of the cats attack them. Cocoa pawed at the window, pretending to tackle the cat, and his tail shook very quickly, almost knocking over one of the glass trinkets.

Maximus took notice. "Cocoa," he scolded. "You know you shouldn't be up there."

"So?", Cocoa scoffed again.

"Get down here, before you get hurt or break something," Maximus commanded in a firm voice.

Cocoa leaped down from the window sill, and Maximus gasped in response, not wanting him to get down like that. After landing hard on the floor, Cocoa continued to wag his tail happily, and trotted over to Maximus. "Hey," he happily suggested to Maximus. "Let's go outside and do some dog stuff, hey Dad?"

Maximus just buried his face deep into the pillow, groaning, ignoring Cocoa.

Cocoa hopped up on top of Maximus. "You know," Cocoa continued. "Dig holes in the soil, mark territory, chase cats?"

"No thanks," Maximus muttered. "Go play with Hector."

"With Hector?", Cocoa scoffed again, his happiness now gone. "You've got to be joking."

Hector gave Cocoa a look of embarrassment.

Maximus lifted his head back up, but Cocoa spoke again before he could reply.

"I'm going to go find someone else," Cocoa stated, and darted off outside.

When he was gone, Maximus looked towards Hector. "What do you wanna do right now?", Maximus asked.

"I'll go grab another book and find a spot outside to read," Hector decided.

"Read?", Maximus asked with slight amusement.

"Yeah. I'm getting good at it," Hector stated proudly.

"You just love 'reading', don't you?"

"Yep! It's fun!"

"That's all you want to do always, is read?"

"Well, I want to study humans further. I want to learn much more about what they do and how they learn."

"Hmm."

"And I just figured I needed to know all there is to reading before I could learn the rest of the stuff."

"I just can't believe you are so interested in that stuff," Maximus remarked.

"You just disapprove of it don't you?", Hector asked with uncertainty.

"I didn't say that," Maximus responded.

"What are you guys talking about?", another voice interrupted the new conversation. It was Daisy.

"Hi, Mom," Hector greeted nervously.

"Hector wants to enthuse me about his reading hobby," Maximus answers Daisy, with amusement, but slight concern in his eyes.

Daisy sat down next to Maximus, and added to Hector with the same expression and tone. "You and your reading," she remarked towards Hector.

A few moments went by with silence. Hector glanced from his mother to his father, not sure exactly what they're thinking.

"Hector?", Maximus asked, breaking the silence. "Have you ever heard of the role of therapy dog?"

"Therapy dog?", Hector asked, baffled.

"A therapy dog is a dog that gives comfort and affection to humans that need help."

"What about them?", Hector asked, still confused, not getting what this has to do with reading.

"Well," Daisy added. "We think that would be a perfect position for you in the pack."

"Position?", Hector responded.

"Role," Maximus added. "The type of dog you should be when you grow up."

"Why me?", Hector responded.

"Because you always seem to enjoy the company of humans more than other dogs," Daisy replied.

Hector gave her a look of slight shock. Nick and Hugo basically said the same thing to him. And he had to admit, it was true. "Maybe...", he responded nervously.

"If you are really good at this marking language, then the humans by now should've taken much notice," Daisy remarked.

"They are probably thinking the same thing as us," Maximus added.

"You're saying the humans are thinking of making me a therapy dog?", Hector asked.

"Maybe," Daisy answered.

"It's possible," Maximus added.

"I think you would love to be a therapy dog, Hector," Daisy assured.

"That's a very important job to have as an adult dog," Maximus added.

"You mean like how Deputy is a coaching dog?", Hector compared.

"Yes," Daisy agreed.

"And you two are the leaders of the pack?", Hector added.

"Yes," Maximus agreed.

"Oh," Hector sighed, slightly disappointed. He did wonder for a while if they would choose him to be the new leader.

Another few moments of silence went by. "Well, go ahead and read a book, then," Maximus said to Hector. "Daisy and I are going to head out to the play-place."

Daisy gave Hector a wink, and both adult dogs headed outside. Hector waited until they left, and walked over to the bookshelf to find a book to read. As he searched through the books, he found one that appeared to be labeled to mean "forest". Hector was feeling interested to learn more about what's in the forest, the place he still wasn't allowed to go to yet. It would be nice to know what dangers could be in the woods. He pulled the book out with his paws, and and then picked it up in his jaws, and began to do the hard heavy work of dragging it across the carpet. The books are usually much bigger than him, and it is quite hard to move one outside. But he managed to pick his way through the front door flap and drag it out onto the porch. From there, he carefully stepped backwards down the steps, and dragged the book across the path leading into the garden. Inside the garden, he decided to sit against a rock a few yards away from the nearby pond.

Hector took a few moments to catch his breath, as hauling the book over there was tough work, but it was more comfortable to read with fresh air. He opened the book, and saw vivid images of a forest. He looked at the medium-sized markings on the pages, and began to try to read them. After a few minutes, he found that the middle of the book began to talk about certain animals that live in the woods. Deer live in herds, and they are often seen in groups. Raccoons like to hide inside tree holes and sleep all day, and come out at night to search for food. Opossums play dead. Beavers build their homes out of sticks and mud and create bigger bodies of water. As Hector read about these animals, he did not feel as though there is really anything scary about the woods. This is fascinating, and he would love to go see these animals in action in real life.

" _What is so dangerous about the woods, then_?", Hector thought, confused as to why the woods were deemed too dangerous for very young pups.

Another part of the book showed pictures of several kinds of birds. Hector recognized the sparrow, wren, robin, blackbird, cardinal, mourning dove, and goldfinch. He had seen plenty of those birds all over the farm. Another part of the book was all about plants. It showed the leaves of oaks, hickory, maple, ash, willow, and several other trees. There were so many images of flowers in the book as well, and they all looked very different than the flowers in the garden.

After a half hour of reading the fascinating book, Hector heard the sounds of two approaching pups. They were both laughing. Hector turned to see who they were, and it was Audrey and Layla, his sisters. Audrey and Layla liked playing at night more than during the day. They stopped laughing when they reached Hector, seeing him.

"Oh," Layla blankly greeted Hector. "Hi, Hector."

"What are you doing?", Audrey asked, amused, looking at the book under Hector's paws.

"You're marking dung?", Layla added, also amused.

"Reading," Hector corrected, in a firm voice, not wanting to get too angry.

"Why?", Layla added, still amused.

"This book is all about the woods," Hector answered, trying to keep his voice from expressing his feeling of irritation from the interruption of peace and quiet.

"The woods?", Audrey asked.

"Yes," Hector assured. "The FOREST."

"We've been in the woods," Audrey remarked. "Talk about the vast array of flowers and leaves."

"And the songbirds," Layla added.

"And don't forget about the giant waterfall and river," Audrey added.

"Giant waterfall and river?", Hector asked, his ears perking.

"Yeah," Audrey answered. "It's so big and famous, that there's a giant fort to go along with it full of water monsters."

" _A fort with water monsters_?", Hector thought. He had heard about this before. "Did the monsters attack you?", he asked.

"No," Layla answered. "But I think the humans ride them down the waterfall and river."

"Those things were in a deep sleep," Audrey added. "They looked as though they haven't been touched in a very long time."

"What do you mean?", Hector asked, interested.

"You can find out when your parents finally let you go," Audrey answered, in a teasing and amused tone.

"Well," Layla added, in the same tone, "IF they ever let you go."

They both laughed.

"But...", Hector started to protest.

"Don't even think about it," Audrey assured in a mean tone. "Runts don't belong in the forest."

Hector gave them an offended look. They both laughed in a teasing voice in response, and trotted off out of the garden.

"Just leave him to mark his stupid dung," Audrey teased on their way out, both continuing to laugh.

Hector waited until they were gone to look away. He looked around, and sniffed the cool evening air. Crickets were chirping all around him, fireflies lit up the garden, and the sky was beginning to turn maroon.

"Another day is ending," Hector said to himself. He got up, and walked over to the now shining pond, and took a needed drink. "Getting too dark to read outside."

He heard someone else coming. It was a female human. Hector turned to look at her as she spotted him. The human spoke to him in the same demeaning-sounding voice humans usually spoke to pups in. She pointed towards the book and continued to speak in that tone. Hector padded over to the book. She knelt down and reached over to Hector and scratched behind his ears approvingly, as if praising him even more for his reading ability. She scooped him up with one hand, and used her other hand to pick the book up.

" _Gee, she sure makes it look easy to carry a book around_ ," Hector thought.

The female human carried the book and Hector back inside the house, placing Hector on the sofa, and the book back where Hector had found it. She walked back over to Hector on the sofa, and Hector caught the sound that meant "treat" as she spoke to him again.

Hector yipped in response, pretending to say "thank you" somehow. Treats usually did taste pretty good. Much better than the chow, that's for sure.

The human clapped her hands twice and Hector hopped off the sofa, and followed her into the kitchen. The human picked up a small bag from the table, and reached inside of it with her hand to grab a treat. She put the bag back down after closing it, and knelt down and held the bone-shaped treat in her hand in front of Hector's nose.

She made a small sound. Hector recognized the command, and quickly rolled over, his tail wagging happily. In response to the trick, she offered the treat to him, and he ate it out of her hand. Then she petted his head as he chewed it. Hector heard the sound term of "Good boy, Hector!". She stood back up, and walked out of the kitchen chuckling.

After Hector swallowed his treat, he trotted back outside to the dirt-place to make dirt before going to sleep. As he finished, he turned around and saw several dogs entering the barn, returning from the play-place, he assumed. He saw Maximus and Daisy entering, and followed. As he trotted through the barn, tired dogs were fixing their nests and taking a drink from the water bowl. Hector stopped to take a drink as well. Hector reached his nest, and saw Maximus and Daisy talking to the rest of the litter. Hector quickly joined to hear what was going on.

"Oh, Hector," Maximus remarked as Hector reached him. "There you are."

"What's happening?", Hector asked.

"We are going somewhere with the master tomorrow," Daisy explained. "It's for farm business."

"Where?", Hector responded.

"Don't know exactly where," Maximus answered. "But we know the humans are taking us with them. We can hear the sounds that mean "coming with us"."

"And the thing is, you guys won't be coming with us," Daisy added.

"What we are asking from all of you for is to promise that you will behave," Maximus stated in a firm voice.

"That means no getting into mischief or trouble while we are gone for the day," Daisy added.

"No trying to break into the rescue dogs' place," Maximus directed at Rocky. Rocky rolled his eyes.

"No attacking the chickens," Daisy directed at Cocoa. Cocoa humphed.

"No going into the woods," Maximus directed at Hector. Hector gave a look of a mixture of disappointment and slight anger. He also felt almost embarrassed that he was directed at, as Chloe turned to look at him in response, uncertainty in her eyes, Hector returning that same look to her.

"No breaking our rules," Daisy stated.

"Is that understood?", Maximus demanded in a very firm voice, with wide eyes glancing at each of the pups, with a serious face.

After a few moments of silence, Maximus repeated in a louder tone. "Is that UNDERSTOOD?"

"Yes," all of the pups answered together, nervously.

"Good," Maximus approved. He layed down in the nest, and so did Daisy, both going to sleep, rather quickly. The pups did the same.

As Chloe was as well, Hector paused her. "Hey, Chloe," he whispered. "Can we talk outside for a minute?"

"Okay," Chloe agreed, apprehension in her eyes.

Chloe started to walk over to a hole in the barn, and Hector followed, looking back to see that Maximus and Daisy were not watching. When they reached a few feet outside the hole, Hector began a very quiet conversation.

"Chloe," Hector began.

"What is it?", Chloe asked.

"We HAVE to go to the woods tomorrow!", he stated.

Chloe's eyes widened in shock. "WHAT?", she sort of mouthed.

"The WOODS!", he repeated.

"Are you CRAZY?", she asked, in complete shock. "Dad specifically told us NOT to go into the woods."

"I KNOW," he protested. "But I HAVE to know what's in there. Tomorrow's my only chance. We won't be able to go in there until we're adults, probably!"

"But...", she argued.

"That's a LONG time!", he argued back. "I don't want to wait that long! Do you?"

"Well, no...but...", she almost agreed.

"Then let's go!", he assured.

"But, but, but what if we get caught? We would be grounded for life!", she panicked.

"Don't worry," he assured her. "We WON'T get caught. Everybody knows I would be reading. And I usually don't read somewhere everyone else would be."

"And I think that's the point I'm trying to make. What if they come looking for you and...", she continued to protest.

"It'll be FINE! I PROMISE!", he assured again.

"But," she continued, "It's supposed to be very dangerous out there!"

"Look, Chloe," he persuaded. "I have read a book today ALL about the woods! Nothing in the book said there was anything that dangerous!"

Chloe sighed. She hated getting into arguments with Hector. After several moments of silence, Hector giving Chloe a look of "PLEASE", she finally accepted, but she spoke as firmly as their father did. "Okay, fine. But if we get caught, you better take all responsibility for it. This was YOUR idea!"

"I PROMISE!", Hector promised. "But I can assure you we won't get caught!"

"Whatever," Chloe sighed, irritated, and rolled her eyes, and headed back inside towards the nest to sleep. She clearly did not want to hear any more Hector had to persuade.

Before Hector followed her inside, he sat down, and looked up towards the stars, in deep thought. " _What's the worst that could happen_?", he thought. " _Falling into a rabbit hole_?", he joked. " _There's nothing to worry about. We will both be laughing about this tomorrow night when Max and Daisy get back. We'll be sure they don't find out._ " Hector could not wait to finally see that waterfall, and explore the woods. He had the whole day tomorrow. He raced excitedly but quietly back to his nest, and snuggled next to Chloe as he fell asleep.


	14. The Adventure Through The Woods

"So this is the start of the trail?", Hector aked, looking out into the pathway of soil leading into the woods.

"You sure you want to do this?", Chloe asked him, half with amusement, but with concern in her eyes.

Hector nodded.

"Let's go, then."

The two puppies raced into the woods, their claws gripping into the soil, both their tails wagging excitedly. It was in the middle of the day, and Maximus and Daisy have left the farm with the master and a few other humans in a monster that morning. Chloe was worried that someone would suspect that she and Hector were missing, skipping mealtimes for all the pups their age. Hector and Chloe both ate their first two meals before leaving, because Hector reluctantly agreed. While they waited for the second meal, Hector showed Chloe that forest book he read the night before. Now they felt prepared, and were ready to start the adventure. Maximus and Daisy said they would probably not be back until all the dogs were asleep. Hector knew to keep his eye on the sun. He wasn't concerned. Chloe and he spent the morning away from the other dogs, only the humans knowing where they were. They carefully snuck their way through the horse place, being sure that no one was watching or following them, especially not Ranger and Tracker again.

After 10 minutes of walking on the trail, Hector and Chloe could not see too much yet. They heard birds chirping, and were in a cluster of trees of different species. Hector could recognize most of them, by what leaf and nut or seed fell from them.

After another minute, they reached a spot that appeared to lead down two different paths, one going left, another going right. They stopped, and looked down both paths.

"Which way should we go?", Chloe asked.

Hector sniffed both ways. He picked up a familiar scent on the right path. "Let's go this way," Hector suggested for the right path, pointing to it with his nose.

Chloe nodded, and Hector led the way down the right path. Hector continued to sniff for the next minute, and they stopped when they spotted two, what looked like, dens. The dens were about 50 feet away from the trail, and were a blur from that far away. Hector and Chloe both perked their ears, and looked at each other with curious faces.

They padded off the trail through the green vegetation, and paused in front of one of the dens.

Chloe peered inside it, and there was a nest of ferns and moss, the walls lined with boulders and grass. "Hello? Anyone in here?", Chloe waited for an answer.

While Chloe was looking inside that den, Hector was checking out the other one. "Hello?", he did the same into the other den.

Hector padded back to Chloe when he had no answer, either. Both of the dens appeared to be empty. But Hector could recognize the scent coming from them.

"Don't they smell familiar to you?", Hector asked Chloe.

Chloe sniffed the den, and agreed it did indeed. "Smells like cats," she remarked.

Hector remembered the cats telling him that they lived in the woods. "The four cats that wander around the farm...they told me that their nests are in the woods. These must belong to two of them. Misty and Bandit, I think."

"I'm guessing they're out hunting," Chloe suggested.

Hector nodded. "Well, let's get back on the trail."

Both puppies went back to the trail, and continued down the right path. After another two minutes, they heard the sounds of angry blue jays fighting at the tops of walnut trees. They both looked up and watched them.

"We would get a better view of the forest from the top of those trees," Hector remarked.

"How do you propose we get up there?", Chloe asked, sarcasm in her eyes.

" _How would we_?", Hector asked himself in his mind. "I'm...not...sure...," Hector answered with uncertainty.

"Let's enjoy what we can on the ground," Chloe suggested.

"Okay," Hector agreed.

As they continued along the trail for the next 20 minutes, they stopped again when they reached another end to a path, this time, a large space. The trail changed from soil to a more rocky path, similar to the garden path. There was a small house, on the other side, and standing in the middle are what looked liked tables with attached benches, and the large containers humans placed their rubbish in.

Hector and Chloe both sniffed. "Smells like human food here," Hector remarked.

"A very faint scent, though," Chloe added.

The place appeared to be deserted right then. Hector and Chloe trotted across the circular area, past the tables, and wanted to check out the house. It appeared to be open on two sides. They chose the side on the left, and saw that there was no door, just an opening, when they reached it. There were a few hard steps going up, and then a wooden floor in front of the opening. When they stepped inside, the floor went from wooden to more like tiles, very similar to the floor next to the pools in the play-place. As they walked in, there was one turn, and they ended up in one open room. There were several open black doors in front of tiny spaces lined up along the wall on the left side they were standing next to. Hector and Chloe sniffed the room, and both groaned in disgust.

"Yuck!", Chloe exclaimed. "I think this is a dirt-place!"

"I've explored this house enough, how about you?", Hector also exclaimed.

Both puppies turned around, and headed back outside. On the sides of the open area, there were two paths on each. They ran over to the set of paths on their side.

"Where now?", Chloe asked.

In the middle of the two paths, there was a wooden pole, that, to Hector's shock, had two branches, each with a different marking pattern on them.

Chloe looked up at the pole's branches, where Hector was looking. Hector looked at her. She had an expression on her face that appeared to be a mixture of doubt and curiousity. "What...," Chloe hesitated to ask Hector. "What do they say?"

Hector squinted his eyes, because it was harder for him to read the top from the bottom. His eyesight was still not that great. Just good enough for reading up close.

"I think...", Hector widened his eyes in shock. "The right branch pointing to the right path is saying that it leads to the waterfall!", Hector excitedly exclaimed. He jumped up and down briefly, his tail wagging fast.

"Then let's go down that path, then!", Chloe quickly responded.

Both puppies dashed through the right path. After several minutes, they stopped to catch their breath.

"I think we...", Hector began, catching his breath.

"...we misjudged...the...the distance...", Chloe finished for him, also panting.

Hector looked at a giant boulder on the other side of the path, that appeared to act as a "wall" separating the two paths. It blocked the sunlight a little.

"Do you wanna take a break for a minute?", Hector asked.

"I'm thirsty," Chloe responded.

Hector realized he was getting really thirsty, too. It was pretty hot outside, and they had to have been in the woods for an hour now, at least. "Let's walk along the boulders. It's shady," Hector suggested, pointing his tail towards the boulders.

Hector and Chloe continued, in the shade of the rocks, and after another few minutes, the path made a turn, and then there was a hill of the trail. When they reached the top of the hill, which was about 50 feet going up, they both froze and their eyes widened in shock. Down the hill, which was between 100 and 200 feet down, was a meadow. Standing in the meadow was a herd of brown hoofed animals.

"Deer!", Hector exclaimed. "Those are deer!"

"Wow!", Chloe added.

Both puppies darted down the hill towards them. Going down the hill was much easier than going up. They stood in front of the grazing herd.

"Hey! Can anyone tell us where we can find water?", Hector called out to the deer.

The deer standing closest to them paused their grazing, and looked towards them, twitching their ears.

After a few moments of silence, Hector asked again, slightly louder and clearer. "Are we close to the waterfall? Cuz I don't hear it yet."

The deer wiggled their noses, twitched their ears again, and then slowly continued their grazing.

Hector tilted his head with an annoyed expression, at all the deer ignoring his question. "Why don't they answer?", Hector asked, half to himself.

Chloe leaned closer to him. "Uh, Hector?", she asked Hector, in a slightly dumbfounded tone.

"Yeah?", Hector replied.

Chloe looked at the deer, and then back at Hector, who was now looking at her. "They probably don't speak canine," she remarked.

"Oh...right," Hector agreed, slowly, embarrassed. Of course the deer don't speak canine. "Don't dogs come here to see them all the time?"

"I don't think they like humans, Hector," Chloe remarked. "The dogs usually don't come alone."

"Right...," Hector agreed slowly again, nodding his head.

Two fawns walked over to them with curious faces.

Chloe yipped. In response, the fawns bleated. Chloe yipped again. The fawns bleated again. Chloe yipped even louder, and the fawns bleated louder. Hector yipped, and the fawns didn't respond. Hector yipped again, and they still didn't respond.

Chloe giggled. "They think you're crazy!", she remarked, amused.

Hector felt slightly embarrassed again, but immediately changed the subject. "Let's keep going. I'm parched!"

"Okay," Chloe chuckled in agreement. "Me too."

The two puppies looked down the trail. It still continued, but the herd was standing across it. They struggled through the tall grass, as they made their way through the maze of deer, trying not to lose the trail. When they finally reached the other side of the grazing herd, they picked up their speed, back on the trail.

They paused in their tracks when they heard the two fawns bleating to them again. Hector and Chloe turned around, and both yipped twice at them together. Both deer bleated at the same time in response. It was as if they were saying "good luck" to them.

Both puppies laughed, and continued on their way.

Across the meadow, they watched rabbits hopping along, and up in the sky of cumulus clouds, they watched and listened to the noisy gaggle flying.

"Why do they fly in that shape?", Chloe asked.

"The tired take a break in the low back, and they keep count of each other," Hector explained, from the book he read. "It actually resembles one of the markings in a pattern."

"Oh," Chloe responded.

Up ahead were trees again, continuing on into the forest. They smelled water, and where the grass was much shorter, and behind some cat-tails, they spotted a pond.

"Water!", Hector and Chloe both exclaimed excitedly at the same time, then raced towards the pond.

They paused in front of the pond, and leaned down and took a much needed drink. In the meadow, the only shade there was was the tallest grass. The pond water was not the best tasting water, but for the moment, any water would taste great. After two minutes of lapping up the water, they finally decided they were quenched.

Chloe sighed in relief, then Hector did as well. They then kept padding until they finally reached the trees. As they headed through the forest, it had been another hour since they began to walk on the right trail back at the wooden pole.

They spotted a raccoon spying on them through his tree hole. An opossum was hanging upside down on a tree limb. In the tree tops, they heard the chattering of several squirrels.

"Don't you ever feel the urge to chase them?", Chloe asked.

"What?", Hector replied.

"The squirrels," Chloe added.

"Why would I chase squirrels?", Hector asked, confused.

"You wouldn't?", Chloe asked, also confused. "Cocoa sure loves to," she chuckled. "I remember one time he was so determined to catch his prey, he accidentally hit his head on the bark of the tree while the squirrel ran up it." She laughed at the funny memory.

"What's the point of chasing prey, when you can't eat it anyway?", Hector argued. "Besides, chasing a ball is already a boring game. I can't see why a squirrel makes any difference."

Chloe rolled her eyes in response. "I still don't get why you are so against dog games."

"I never said I was 'against' them," Hector argued. "It's just that I don't find fetching a ball, or a stick, or a squirrel, is a game."

"If it's not a game, than what is it?"

"A boring way of managing a health requirement."

Chloe in response gave him a confused look.

"A futility of an exercise," Hector added.

Chloe gave him the "whatever" look, and then just slowly looked away, and picked up her speed, without saying anything else. Hector knew he said something weird, but, Chloe should be used to him saying stuff like that by now.

After another 15 minutes of walking, they came across another body of water. When Hector and Chloe reached the edge of the water, they saw that it was a lagoon, and a stream connected to it, leading down a long way through the forest. Cascades splashed into the water from tall boulders.

Chloe looked at the little waterfalls in amusement. "Those aren't what we walked all the way here to look at right?"

Hector chuckled. "Of course not. I don't see a giant fort anywhere."

"This is like the pool area in the play-place," Chloe remarked. She turned towards Hector and gave him a confused look. "You haven't even swam in there, yet, have you?"

"Not too much, no," Hector replied.

"Well, then, let's take a break from hiking, and swim, then!", Chloe suggested.

"Swim?", Hector asked.

Chloe ran over through the cat-tails and up the 40 foot tall boulders. She stood over the waterfall, and looked over to Hector. Hector watcher her in shock. "You watching, Hector?", she called over to him. "One, two...", Chloe started to countdown to her jump, and crouched down ready to spring. "THREE!", she yelped, leaping off the boulder, and gliding over the waterfall, plunging into the water below.

Hector padded over to the edge of the water near the waterfall, and waited for Chloe to come up. After 30 seconds, he started to get concerned. "Chloe? Chloe?", he called for her.

"Your turn, Hector!", she commanded playfully, making Hector jump in fright and yelp, and fall into the water. Chloe sneaked up behind him. She laughed in response. "Come on!", she urged. "It's so much fun!"

Before Hector could reply, she bolted back up the boulder, and stood at the top waiting for him. As Hector watched her, he got back up, and out of the water. He followed her up the boulder, but before he could reach her, she again jumped off the cliff. She whooped as she leaped over the waterfall.

Hector hesitated for a moment, and then got a little closer to the waterfall. Chloe surfaced below, and watched Hector. "Come on, Hector!", she urged again. "JUMP!"

Hector got a little bit closer, but before he could jump, he slipped on some moss growing on the side of the boulder, and fell off the cliff. He yelped as he did. Under the water, he swam away from the bubbles, and then surfaced, taking a breath.

Chloe paddled next to him. "I said JUMP, not SLIP, down the boulder!", she teased playfully.

Hector smiled. "It was an ACCIDENT!", Hector playfully argued, splashing Chloe, with his front paws.

Chloe shook the splash off her face, and splashed back. Her splash was bigger, since she was bigger.

Hector felt the full force of the splash, and splashed her again. Both puppies laughed happily as they splashed each other.

"Race you back up there!", Chloe yelped, already paddling towards the water's edge.

"Hey!", Hector yelped back in amusement, following her as fast as he could.

Chloe darted back up the boulder, Hector right behind her, and she jumped over the waterfall to escape, Hector jumping after her, both whooping as they plunged into the lagoon.

As they surfaced again, they both continued their playful laughing.

For the next hour, they had fun playing in the water. It felt good to cool down on a hot day, and Hector and Chloe wanted to make the most of their trip. They finally decided to keep going, keep looking for the real waterfall.

They pulled themselves over onto the very muddy side of the lagoon.

"That was awesome!", Chloe exclaimed.

"I knew we should have stopped and played here!", Hector praised himself.

Chloe chuckled. "Hey, genius, it was MY idea," she corrected him.

"Yeah," Hector claimed. "But I THOUGHT of it first, I just didn't say it before you."

"LIAR!", Chloe playfully teased, leaning over with her rear in the air.

"Oh, yeah?", Hector teased back.

Hector pounced on her, and they tumbled over each other, getting all muddy, until Hector yelped as Chloe pinned him to the ground, easily.

"Hah, hah, pinned you!", Chloe teased.

"Hey," Hector responded. "Let go of me, sis," he commanded playfully, struggling to free himself.

Chloe let go, and walked away. Hector, got up, and turned around, and crept up towards her as she was walking away.

Hector pounced on her again, on the back, and he rode Chloe as she tried to knock him off, while he was clinging on to her. Chloe then succeeded on making him let go as she whacked him with her tail, and they rolled over, and Chloe easily again pinned her tiny brother to the ground, into the mud. Hector grunted.

Chloe chuckled again, with a mischievious smile. "Hector, never underestimate girl power," she teased playfully again, in a flirty tone.

Hector looked into Chloe's beautiful blue eyes, and for a few moments, he stared into them, and they seemed to mesmerize him. Chloe stared into his eyes, too, and both puppies felt a brief connection to each other, like this has been the best day of both of their lives.

Both Hector and Chloe snapping out of their sudden trance, she let go of him, and as he got up, she rolled in the mud more. "Doesn't this mud smell so good?", she asked.

Hector sniffed the earth below his paws. "Yes," he agreed. "Not as good as dew, but yes." He shook some mud off his fur.

Chloe got back up, and shook some mud off her fur, too. "We should keep going, right?", she asked.

"Let's keep going!", Hector agreed. "I can sense the real waterfall already!", he exclaimed with excitement.

They headed back onto the trail, and continued the hike. As they walked right next to each other, they kept glancing at each other's eyes, as if they were both thinking of something, the same thing, but didn't know what it was. Neither said a word until after another 10 minutes, and Chloe broke the silence.

"I'm hungry, Hector," Chloe remarked. "Are you hungry?"

Hector felt that feeling in his belly, too. "Yeah."

"Is there something here in the woods we can eat, you think?"

"I don't know."

"What about a flower of some sort?"

"I know you love your plants, and your flowers, every way, but I find there is something suspicious about the flowers out here looking different then the ones in the garden. You might not want to eat something you don't know what it is," Hector warned. "And I'm afraid I don't know any safe-to-eat flowers."

Chloe sighed.

After another 5 minutes, they came across a berry bush. Hector looked at the wild berries, and recognized them from the forest book. "Hey, Chloe," he remarked. "We can eat these berries. They're edible!"

"We can?", Chloe asked.

"Yes!", Hector happily exclaimed.

"Yes!", Chloe approved.

Both puppies chowed down on the wild berries, replacing their next meal. For several minutes, they ate until they felt better.

"Not bad tasting when you're starving, that's for sure!", Chloe commented, licking her lips.

"Agreed," Hector agreed, also licking his lips.

Both puppies continued on the trail. After another 20 minutes, they spotted another hill, but this time, is was over 200 feet tall. And the trail stopped at a wooden ramp. In the distance, they could hear the faint sound of the waterfall.

"Wow!", Hector excitedly exclaimed. "The waterfall must be at the top!"

"Come on!", Chloe urged.

The two puppies raced towards the start of the hill.

They paused in front of the ramp. The wooden ramp was 30 feet long. "Must be big so the horses can climb up it," Chloe remarked.

"Yeah," Hector agreed. He looked towards the top. " _What a climb_!", he thought. "It's probably much farther than just up there," he sighed. The sound of the waterfall was still faint.

"I bet the DOGS ride the horses up this ramp, too," Chloe stated.

"No doubt about that," Hector agreed.

"Well, the sooner we get moving, the faster we get there," Chloe assured.

Hector nodded. "Let's go."

The two puppies began the long hike up the ramp. When they finally reached the top, they panted in exhaustion. It had taken them 15 minutes to get to the top, going as fast as they could. They walked for another minute to the cliff ahead, and when they looked down, they both gasped in surprise. About 30 feet down, there was a very interesting place. They trotted down, and paused in front of a big wooden "sign" that had marking language written on it, and a paw print as the background picture.

"You want to just rest for a little while?", Hector asked.

"Yes," Chloe agreed.

Both puppies layed down near the sign, in the grass below, which was much shorter than in the meadow, implying that humans have cut it down. Both puppies took another minute to pant, and catch their breath, before speaking again.

"I'm thirsty again," Hector remarked. "What about you?"

"I am too," Chloe nodded. She took a glance at the sign, and then looked back at Hector. "What does that sign say?"

Hector tried to read it. "One of those patterns I haven't seen before. It looks like cam...a...tur...i, I think."

"What does that mean?", Chloe chuckled.

"No idea," Hector replied. He sniffed the air around him. "Doesn't this place smell kinda weird?"

Chloe sniffed too. "Yeah, it kinda does," she agreed.

They both looked in front of them, and there were several gray stones lined against each other in several rows. Some of them had flowers in front of them. They all appeared to have carved marking patterns on them. There were so many, there had to be at least a 1,000, spread across the area.

"What ARE those things?", Chloe asked.

Hector thought for a moment. He shook his head slowly, his eyes wide. "I have no clue."

"I wonder why there's so many of them."

"They must mean something, then."

"Yeah, but what?"

"Maybe it has something to do with the waterfall."

Hector lifted his head higher, and peered over the stones. At the end, he could see another 30 foot tall hill led farther. Behind it, he could see a very tall wooden house. The sound of the waterfall was getting a little louder. "That has to be the fort," he stated.

"How long have we been out here?", Chloe asked.

"Hours," Hector answered, looking at the sun that was now starting to set. "Hope nobody is looking for us."

"So, we see the waterfall, then we head back, right?", Chloe asked, with concern in her eyes.

"Possibly," Hector answered with uncertainty. "Depends on what more we can find."

"Let's look closer at those stones," Chloe suggested.

Hector nodded in agreement, and they got up, ending their brief break, and trotted over to the closest stones. Hector already started to read the writing. "It appears to say 'Alexander' on it."

"That must be someone's name," Chloe suggested. "What about this one?", she pointed with her paw to the one next to it.

Hector read it. "Elizabeth," he answered. "That must be a name, too." Hector took a few steps back, and took a few moments to glance at the other nearby stones lined up against those two. "They all have names on them. And they also all appear to say 'in memory of', too," he examined.

"'In memory of'?", Chloe asked, confused. "What does that mean?"

Hector looked back at Chloe, with a serious look on his face. "Again, Chloe, I don't know."

Chloe peered over the stone she was standing in front of, and looked at the very many others behind it. "Maybe it's a way to honor whoever these beings are," Chloe guessed.

"Maybe," Hector agreed. Hector did agree it probably had something to do with honor, something good, but the scent he was picking up for some reason made him uncomfortable. He changed the subject before any bad thoughts could occur to him. "Hey! I'll RACE you to the top of the hill!", he challenged.

Chloe spun around, and chuckled. "You're on!", she approved.

Without saying anything else, Hector darted off, and Chloe immediately followed. Both puppies raced across the many stones for the next few minutes, until they were both at the top of the hill, panting. Usually Chloe could run much much much faster than Hector, but today, she was exhausted from the hiking already, and didn't win by as much as she usually would. Standing next to each other, they looked at the giant fort in awe. It was a big wooden house that was not all the way sealed. It appeared to be held together by the hill holding the waterfall, a giant mound in the middle. Staircases on both sides allowed the climb up to the openings. The sound of the waterfall was very loud, and they knew they would see it once they got inside the fort, towards the top. As they darted to the side of the fort, Hector spotted something black on the ground, in the middle. He ran over to it, and saw that it was a giant hole.

"Hey, Chloe! Come over here!", he called to Chloe, excitedly. In a flash, Chloe was there, and stared down at the hole.

"It must be an underground cave!", Chloe exclaimed. "Let's go in!"

She hopped down into the dark hole, and Hector followed. As he hit the ground, his paws felt sore after the long hike, and now after he landed on a very hard rocky cool ground. He grunted, and then continued to follow Chloe into the cave. It was completely dark after he turned into a long corridor. After 30 seconds, it was so dark, he could not see Chloe in front of him. He also realized that they were going down a hill, further underground. It was completely quiet. Hector just then remembered the nightmare he had before. The silence, then the footsteps, the complete black, and the cold environment, were all here.

" _Is this what my dream was trying to tell me about? Does this cave have something to do with my dream_?", Hector thought, with fear, a cold shiver down his spine making him shudder.

After another two minutes, they bumped into the wall of the cave, and now knowing they need to turn, turn, and finally see a light down the next corridor.

Hector and Chloe sigh with relief to see a light, and run towards it, careful not to bump into each other. When they reach the light, they turn to see a room of the cave, very enormous.

"Wow!", they both say at the same time, in fascination.

On the walls of the cave's room, there were all kinds of "paintings" of dogs that looked like the farm dogs. They were doing all sorts of things. There were also paintings of humans doing things, and also images of what appeared to be wolves, and then also a few images of other forest animals. They were all different colors, and shapes, and there were more pawprints than any other images. Hector was reminded of the paw prints in the barn where they slept. The room was about 100 feet tall, and Hector realized that was the part of the hill that appeared in the middle of the fort. Above the room, was a room of the fort. Spiral stairs were in the center of the room, leading up to the fort. As Hector and Chloe took 10 minutes looking at all the paintings, in fascination, Hector felt a wave of uneasiness. He felt like he was being watched. Not by Chloe. By someone, or something, else. He could sense another presence in this room other than Chloe. He did not smell anyone else, though. Only the faint smells of the humans, dogs, and horses that recently visited.

"Come on, Hector!", Chloe called to Hector from the staircase, snapping Hector out of his thoughts. "The fort! The WATERFALL!"

Hector turned, and padded up to her, as she already began to walk up the stairs. As Hector walked up the stairs, he felt like something was following him, walking up the stairs behind him. He paused, turned to look, but saw nothing. He felt another chill down his spine, and picked up his pace towards Chloe, very happy she was there with him.

When they reached the top, there was another set of spiral stairs attached to the ones they just climbed. They both took a moment to look at this room of the fort, tired of walking up the stairs. This room did not have too much, but there were signs on the wooden walls with marking patterns on them, and also another couple of those tables with attached benches, and rubbish containers. There was what appeared to be another room on the opposite side of the stairs, but Hector assumed it was another dirt-place.

"Hey, Chloe?", Hector asked.

"What's the matter?", Chloe replied.

Hector glanced around for a moment, then leaned in closer to Chloe. "Did you sense anyone else here?", he asked quietly.

"Someone else?", Chloe replied, confused, also in a quiet voice.

"Yes."

"No, why?"

"I felt someone else's presence. Does that sound strange to you?"

Chloe glanced around, and looked at Hector with an expression that said "Are you nuts? What are you talking about?".

After a few more moments, of silence, nothing more than the roaring of the waterfall upstairs, Chloe finally urged Hector to follow again. "One more set of stairs, and we are at the waterfall."

Hector excitedly wagged his tail, putting those scared feelings aside. They raced up the stairs, and when they reached the top, they both together, peered over the last step, slowly, and looked at each other after a look at the cool place.

"Whoa...", they commented at the same time with great interest.

"This is it," Hector proudly commented. "We made it!"

"This is so cool!", Chloe agreed.

"It's great, isn't it?", he asked.

"We could get in big trouble," she chuckled.

"Not if we don't get caught," he mischeiviously chuckled as well.

The two puppies stepped into the room of the fort, walking across the wooden floor, and looked at the giant objects around the room. They had a black head and ears and whitish eyes, but no feet. They had a very fat belly, but with no back. They appeared to all be sleeping. " _THESE must be the WATER MONSTERS I heard about_!", Hector thought excitedly. As he heard, they were asleep, and some of them were covered with dust and cobwebs, as if they hadn't been used in a long time, like Audrey and Layla had described before. The roaring of the waterfall echoed through the room, and at last, Hector and Chloe stood in front of the waterfall, both sighing in excitement.

There was a small narrow pool of water that connected to the top of the waterfall, that ran through the room, along the water monsters. The waterfall appeared to connect to another small waterfall that fell down on the side of the top of the hill, into a river, probably the same one that they had seen before, that connected to the lagoon they played in before. An opening led to an outside deck with tables and chairs, also wooden, with a protective fence around it. They stepped out onto the deck, and hopped onto a table right next to the fence, and looked at the view.

"Wow!", they both exclaimed. "What a view!"

From the fort, they could see everything. They saw the meadow they walked in earlier a long way away, and a LOT of trees, everywhere, the whole woods! They could feel the water splattered from the waterfall landing on their faces, and the mist forming from it as well. Hector and Chloe sniffed the beautiful air, and looked out to the dsitance. Over the beautiful horizon, the sun was setting, and the clouds were purple, the sky was pink, and the sun was slowly changing into an alluring bright red color. The light touched the two puppies, and the breeze blew their ears.

"What a beautiful sunset," Chloe commented.

"Yeah...", Hector sighed. He perked his ears as Chloe's paw touched his paw. Hector turned to look at Chloe, and Chloe did the same. Hector gazed into Chloe's blue eyes, and they sparkled like the stars. He felt that same feeling he had before.

"Hector?", Chloe asked.

"Yeah?", Hector responded, slightly taken out of his trance.

"This day has been the best day of my life," she commented. "I am so happy to be sitting here next to this waterfall with you."

Chloe leaned down and nuzzled Hector affectionately, and Hector returned the affection. Both of their tails wagged.

"Chloe?", Hector asked, pausing the nuzzling.

"Yeah?", Chloe replied.

Hector felt he had to ask her something important. "Do...do you...", he started.

"Do I what?"

"I want to say that I..."

"You what?"

"I...I..."

"What?"

"Do you...do you...", Hector tried to get the words out, but he just couldn't. He just sighed, and finished a sentence. "Do you want to try out a water monster?"

"A water monster?"

"Yeah. Ride down the waterfall?"

"Are you crazy?", Chloe spoke, in a tone that completely changed the mood.

"No. We can ride the river half the way so we can get home faster."

"Oh. I guess that sounds okay."

"It'll be FUN. It'll be just like that other waterfall at the lagoon, only bigger."

"Yeah, you're right, Hector. Let's try it out."

Both puppies hopped off the table, and ran back into the room. They paused in front of a water monster, one that wasn't covered in dust and cobwebs, and one that was sitting in the water already at the end of the pool on the other side of the room. They examined the orange thing for a moment.

"How are we supposed to wake it up?", Chloe asked.

Hector hopped inside its belly, and took a look at the back of its black head. There was a button much bigger than the other few buttons on it.

"I think we wake it up with this button," Hector remarked. He pressed the button, and the monster made a roaring sound immediately, startling both puppies. Hector pressed the middle button, thinking it was suspicious, and after he pressed it, the monster began to move. But it was only moving slowly.

"Hop in, Chloe!", Hector urged.

Chloe hopped in, and Hector tried another button. He pressed one of the small buttons on the bottom, and it made the monster's eyes bright, shining a yellow light on the water. There was also an object that looked like it could be pulled.

"I wonder if that works like horse reins," Chloe wondered, as Hector was looking at it.

Hector and Chloe were sitting on a small bench with a backrest in front of its head, and it appeared to have attachable belts similar to the ones humans clip on inside a land monster. "I think we should strap ourselves in, Chloe," Hector warned.

Chloe picked up the other end of the belt on her side of the bench, and Hector took his end, and he clicked the two together, just like inside a land monster, and pulled the little loose part of the belt, and tightened the belt over their bodies, so that they were both fastened in.

By the time they were done fastening the belt, they were in a straight line in front of the waterfall, heading slowly towards it.

"Are you gonna pull that thing or not?", Chloe asked urgingly.

Hector reluctantly grabbed the "reins" with his right paw, his paw trembling with concern. He pulled the reins, and suddenly, the water monster roared furiously on the command to go faster, and it sure did. The two puppies screamed in fright as the water monster went surging through the pool at top speed, and then plunged over the giant waterfall forcefully. In a few seconds, they were in mid-air, going down the waterfall at a super speed, and they were still screaming, as they felt like they were falling out of their seat, the mist blurred their vision, the sprayed water stinging their eyes, and the view of going down such a great height. They held on as tight as they could, and Hector still held onto the rains, as they plummeted down.

After what felt like forever, they finally reached the bottom of the waterfall, and the angry water monster made a huge splash as it felt the belly smack, roaring in pain, while it sped up, and struggled to stay horizontal and not flip over. The river they were now in had big white waves slashing into the water monster and getting them both wet.

"HECTOR!", Chloe yelped.

"IT'S GONE MAD! I HAVEN'T GOT THIS!", Hector yelped.

"LET GO OF THE REINS!", Chloe yelped urgingly.

Hector let go, and they both held on tight, closing their eyes, and within 30 seconds, the water monster calmed down, slowly down its speed. They opened their eyes, and saw that.

Hector immediately took back what he said. "No, Chloe, I HAVE got this!"

They both laughed, as they realized this was actually so much fun.

The river began to calm down too, and after a cascade, the waves stopped.

Hector and Chloe breathed in relief. They looked at the walls of the monster's belly. "I sure wish we were bigger," Hector remarked.

"Yeah," Chloe agreed. "That way we could actually see where we're going and look at the view."

"Well, the important thing is that we will get back to the farm faster this way, right?"

"Right."

"The sun will be down in no time. We have to be in our nest before Maximus and Daisy come back."

"You sure this is going the right way, Hector?"

"Positive. There was more than one trail, right? So we should see a trail next to where this river ends, at least one that leads to that circular spot."

"Okay. It was your idea to do this, and to come here, anyway."

"If you get sick, eat grass. That helps you to..."

"I know what grass does, Hector."

"Okay, okay..."

For the next several minutes, the water monster carried them through the calm river, and Hector could see tall trees of the forest again.

Hector was now trying to think of that thing he was trying to say earlier. "Chloe?", he hesitantly asked.

"What?", she responded.

"That thing I was REALLY trying to say earlier, well..."

"Sure..."

"Well...uh...you remember when...you know...Ranger and Tracker..."

"What?"

"...um...our parents are leaders...and..."

"Yes."

"...well...that first day...tried...waterfall...we couldn't cuz they..."

"Hector, what is it?", Chloe demanded.

"I...I...Do...you...", Hector kept stammering, still not being able to get the words out of his system.

Some moments of awkward silence went by as the water monster splashed through the river.

Chloe turned her attention back on the river, and heard waves coming again.

"Hector?"

"Yeah?", Hector asked, still thinking of the words.

"The river."

"What about the river?"

"The waves, they're back."

"What?", Hector started to get confused.

The water monster began to grunt, and began to panic. Rapid waves were back, and hit the water monster over and over again. This time, though, the waves starting to fill up its belly.

"OH, NO!", Hector panicked.

"HECTOR! THE REINS!", Chloe began to panic as well.

Hector tried to pull the reins, but the water monster was rocking back and forth repeatedly, almost knocking the two puppies out of their seats. He couldn't grab it! The belly of the water monster was filling up fast, and it was starting to go under the water!

"HECTOR!", Chloe yelped in fear.

The waves took over, and the water monster began to sink.

"HELP! HELP! HELP! HELP US!", the two puppies screamed out for help.

In a few seconds, the water monster was under the water, under the huge rapid white waves. Hector and Chloe quickly batted at the button that held the belt together, and they freed themselves from it. Now the water monster swam away, leaving them under the waves. Hector and Chloe quickly struggled to the surface, and they gasped for air as they briefly went above the water. Then they went back down, and then they went back up, and they coughed, and then went farther down, and then when they surfaced a third time, they took a giant breath before they sunk back down, as two bigger waves smashed them down towards the bottom of the river. Their visibility was gone. They couldn't get back up to the surface. They were about to drown!

40 very long seconds went by, and Hector kept his eyes shut, as he was still under the water, and just about out of breath. He was thinking the worst, and slowly began to pass out. " _ANCESTORS, HELP ME_!", he screamed in his head. All he could hope for now is that that being he detected inside the cave was about to jump in and rescue him and Chloe. He waited for another long 15 seconds.

Just when he was about to give up, he felt someone or something grab a tight hold of his scruff. " _Is it that thing I sensed in the cave_?", Hector prayed.


	15. The Prophecy Of The Extraordinary Canine

Hector felt something grab a tight hold of his scruff. He was passing out, as he was out of air. He could hear nothing but the roaring waves above. Whatever grabbed him, was struggling to keep its grip. Another enormous wave batted down on both of them, and the force of the wave made the thing let go of him, and they both were swept through the current. As more seconds went by, that felt like forever, Hector had no air, no strength, and no fight left in him. His motionless body sank down farther, towards the bottom of the river. As Hector lost his consciousness, the very last thing he felt was the unknown thing grabbing his entire body into its mouth, holding him as tightly as it could.

After a few moments of feeling and sensing absolutely nothing, Hector regained awareness. Still keeping his eyes shut, he realized that he was no longer in the water, and he was not even wet anymore. He felt grass under his paws, and he felt a cool breeze ruffle his fur. He sniffed the air, and all around him were sweet scents. He slowly opened his eyes, and they widened at what he saw. He was in shock. He was laying down in the middle of a grassy field. Above him was a beautiful night sky. The stars and the moon felt so close, he thought he could reach up and touch them. Sparkling dots were all around, but they were not fireflies. They were white. Even the grass was glimmering in the moonlight. The only sounds he could hear were the breeze and crickets chirping softly.

Sitting in front of Hector, was a dog, one of his kind. It was a male adult, and he had a brightly shaded tri-colored pattern. He looked like he was in perfect shape and condition. He was staring at Hector straight in the eye, without much of an expression.

Hector returned the stare, and after another few moments, he sat up. His eyes were curious and full of wonder, but at the same time, there was apprehension and confusion. "Who...who are you?", Hector slowly asked in a quiet, nervous voice. When the mysterious beautiful dog did not answer, Hector asked another question in the same tone. "Where am I?", he asked, looking around the field.

The dog still did not answer. He responded by giving Hector a disapproving expression.

Hector slowly continued to look around him. " _What is this place_?", he asked himself in his mind. " _Why am I here? How did I get here? This is not the river_!"

After another moment went by, the dog finally broke the silence. "Hector?", he asked, in a calm, but firm voice. "Do you know why you are here?"

Hector's eyes widened again. "How...how do you know my name?", he asked nervously. "Who are you?"

The dog did not answer Hector's questions. "You are here because there is something I must tell you," he stated.

"What?", Hector asked, confused, his ears perking.

"Your ancestors have been watching over you, observing every little thing you do."

"Are...are YOU one of my ancestors?"

"Yes, Hector, and I am the one who decided to tell you of a prophecy."

"A prophecy?"

"Not just any prophecy, Hector. YOUR prophecy."

"MY prophecy?"

"Only a few lucky dogs on that farm earn a prophecy."

" _A prophecy_?", Hector wondered. He recalled that his grandfather, Sebastian, told him about how a few lucky dogs get a special message from their ancestors. Could this dog he was talking to right now be the one that sent him that bad dream? Was that dream, though, even a message at all? "Why choose me?", Hector asked.

"You are an extraordinary canine, Hector. The dog you want to become is like nothing we have ever seen."

Hector thought back to that eerie presence in the cave. "Are you the presence I felt in that cave?", he asked nervously.

The dog did not answer. He closed his eyes, and tilted his head up towards the sky. "Listen, young pup," he stated. "This is your prophecy."

Hector listened very closely.

The dog finally spoke after another moment of silence. "An enduring brilliant white light sent by the stars will accompany a divergent red light as they both glimmer through the power of time."

Several seconds of silence went by as Hector sat there in shock. "That's MY prophecy?", he asked.

"Yes."

"But, I can't even see how that's supposed to make sense. What does it mean?"

"You will not know, Hector...until you have fulfilled it."

"But how? When?", Hector asked. When the dog didn't respond, Hector wasn't sure if he had listened to the question. "I had a nightmare. I thought it was significant. Did YOU send me that dream? Does that symbolize my prophecy, what it means?"

The dog did not answer to that either. Another minute of more silence went by, and Hector just sat still in thought about the tremendous thing that was just said. He also could not understand why the dog wouldn't answer all of his questions. Were there such secrets he wasn't allowed to hear?

The dog finally spoke again, in an assertive voice, looking back at Hector. "You cannot die yet, Hector. You HAVE to go back. Your amazing story has only just begun. You did not even receive your prophecy yet. You will have so much to give to the world."

" _Did he just say DIE_?", Hector asked himself, with shock. "Die?", he asked with alarm.

"We will give you a very long life, Hector. Plenty of time to follow your destiny. You are the one who will change the world, in so many ways. But to give your thanks you MUST make a solemn oath to us."

"What?", Hector asked, with concern in his eyes.

The dog spoke in a stern voice. "Do you PROMISE to fulfill your prophecy?"

"Wait...but...how is that supposed to even happen...?"

"Maybe not now, maybe not any time soon, but ONE day, Hector, you must honor your ancestors for the life you are destined to live. Now, do you PROMISE to do that?"

"I promise," Hector promised, without any doubt in his voice, dipping his head with respect.

"Good," the dog praised him, also dipping his head respectfully. "I will tell you one more thing. Some dogs that are given prophecies end up going through pain and suffering to fulfill it."

"Huh?", Hector asked, sounding concerned again. " _Pain and suffering_?", he thought. "Will I have to?", he urged.

Ignoring Hector's question again, the dog made one final, farewell, statement. "Now, go forth, young pup. Go fulfill your destiny."

Before Hector could speak again, he noticed the whole sparkling place was now so white and bright, that his vision went to completely white instantly. After a brief moment when it was all white around him, it all went completely black, as Hector suddenly felt extremely drowsy, and passed out, shutting his eyes completely.

Unconscious again, all was black, silent, and motionless. After several very long moments, Hector once again began to feel his surroundings.

"Hector...Hector...Hector!", a distorted, wailing, and frightened familiar voice frantically sounded in Hector's ears.

Hector felt grass again, but this time, with mud, and he was laying down sideways, filthy and soaking wet again. Ever so slowly, he opened his eyes, the black becoming a colorful blur, and his vision getting clearer as he regained his consciousness. Now really feeling his waterlogged throat and mouth, he lifted up his head, and spat and heavily coughed out lots of water, repeatedly, struggling to get air.

"Oh, Hector...", the same voice sounded again, sobbing in great relief and happiness.

Hector felt it nuzzle him affectionately. Finishing some coughing, and catching his breath, Hector officially looked to see who it was. To his complete and utter shock, it was somebody way unexpected. IT WAS DAISY! But HOW?

"Mom?", Hector asked weakly, out of strength, but shocked.

"Oh, Hector...", Daisy sighed again. "You're okay!"

Hector heard others approaching, and sat up, breathing heavily, looking towards the direction of the sounds. Hector gasped in even bigger shock, widening his eyes, as he saw Deputy, Ranger, Tracker, and so many more dogs, as well as several humans and horses, and Hugo and Nick. It was as if the entire farm was there. Two humans stroked him from behind him, one of them being the master, both also speaking in an overly relieved sounding voice.

"Where's Chloe?", Hector asked in a desperate voice. He was so worried about her. Before Daisy could answer, Hector found a small piece of strength in him, and jumped up, glancing around for Chloe.

As the two humans got up and ran to and yelped at the other humans, Hector noticed Maximus padding up to him. "Hector!", he exclaimed, also relieved. "Thank the ancestors, you're okay!" Maximus nuzzled Hector.

"Chloe!", Hector exclaimed.

"Hector!", Chloe responded, calling to him, and padding up to him. Chloe nuzzled Hector too.

Hector looked up at Maximus. Hector's tail drooped as he saw that Maximus's expression slowly turned from relief, to anger. Although Hector was thrilled to have been saved, he just realized now that he was now in BIG trouble. He gulped.

"Was it YOUR idea to come here, Hector?", Maximus asked. Although he tried hard to keep his voice calm, he was angry, and absolute fury was now in his eyes.

Chloe immediately stopped nuzzling Hector, and as he looked at her, she gave him a concerned expression. Hector could tell that Chloe had told Maximus that this was all his plan.

Hector looked back at Maximus, and reluctantly answered, knowing that he couldn't lie here. "Yes, Max. This was all my fault. I convinced her to come with me. It was all my idea to explore the woods." Hector's expression was now sad and embarrassed, the nearby animals watching and listening.

Maximus closed his eyes and sighed. "Do you have any idea how worried we were?", he scolded.

"Max...I'm...I'm...I'm sorry," Hector tried to apologize.

"We're going back to the farm! NOW!", Maximus growled angrily, silencing Hector. He stormed off, and signaled to his pack with his tail that it was time to head back.

Hector sighed.

Two different humans ran up to the two pups, and picked them up, wrapping them in a warm cloth, and carrying them to the horses, climbing on top of two of them. The master called to all the other humans, and all the humans got back on the horses, and began to ride off. The human holding Hector was riding Rainstorm. The human holding Chloe was riding Starlight. The master was the last to hop onto a horse. He rode Champ.

As all the horses cantered, the master guided Champ to the front, and all the dogs quickly followed, the parrots flying overhead. Hector was finding the bouncing a little uncomfortable, as he was exhausted. By the time everyone was back on the farm, the sun was all the way down, and above was a night sky full of stars.

Hector and Chloe were placed down on several cloths on the floor of the stable, next to the back door. The humans were starting to put away the horses, having their saddles and reins taken off, and being placed back in their stalls. Maximus trotted over to the two pups, still with an angry face.

"What did you two think you were doing?", Maximus angrily scolded them. "Venturing off into the woods after I specifically told you not to!"

"It was all MY idea, Max," Hector wept. "Don't blame Chloe for this."

"Well," Chloe tried to respond, also starting to weep. "I know Hector persuaded me, but I thought he shouldn't go alone."

"I didn't know that something like THAT could happen," Hector tried to explain through his weeping.

"THAT IS NO EXCUSE!", Maximus silenced them both in a rage, making them duck in fright. "When I TELL you NOT to do something, I EXPECT YOU to obey me! You LIED to me! That is COMPLETELY unacceptable!"

"But...but...if it wasn't for that river, we would have been fine!", Hector protested.

"Yeah!", Chloe agreed.

"And you said that you wouldn't be back until...", Hector added.

"You'd attempt to get away with your lies?", Maximus spat back. "I assure you, I can TELL if you two were in the woods or not! THAT would NOT have made ANY difference!"

"How did you even...", Chloe tried to ask Maximus.

"We were only wanting to...", Hector tried to add.

"The MASTER must be angry with you both, too!", Maximus spat.

"The master?", Chloe asked.

"For all I know, he may give you BOTH limitations!" Maximus spat.

"Limitations?", Hector asked.

"If I don't punish you, you can be assured HE will!", Maximus added.

"But I didn't know something in the woods would be so...", Hector wept.

"DANGEROUS?", Maximus answered for him furiously.

"I read a book on the forest, Max," Hector tried to convince. "It did NOT tell of anything THAT dangerous!"

"Books are for HUMANS to learn from, Hector!", Maximus yelled at him furiously. "THAT BOOK WAS NOT GOING TO WARN YOU ABOUT THE DANGERS TO A DOG, BECAUSE A DOG WOULDN'T READ IT!"

Hector wept harder now. Maximus never spoke to him like this before. "But, I always learn from books..."

"THAT'S IT, HECTOR! YOU ARE GROUNDED! NO READING FOR A MOON!", Maximus shouted furiously.

"But, Max, that's totally unfair!", Hector protested, sobbing.

"UNFAIR? DOGS NEVER DO THAT ANYWAY!", Maximus shouted furiously back. "IF I FIND OUT YOU READ ONE TINY THING, YOU ARE NEVER, REPEAT, NEVER, READING AGAIN! YOU ARE TO ACT LIKE A DOG, BECAUSE YOU ARE A DOG!"

"Well then, maybe I don't WANT to be a dog!", Hector protested.

"LIKE IT OR NOT, YOU ARE A DOG, AND UNTIL YOU START ACTING LIKE ONE, YOU CAN JUST GET USED TO BEING TREATED LIKE THIS EVERY DAY!", Maximus screamed furiously at Hector. He then immediately turned around and stormed off to the other side of the stable, running outside, without another word, kicking straw across the floor.

Chloe was gaping through that rage. She was clearly shocked by what Maximus did. She closed her mouth, and gave Hector a sympathetic look. Hector was sobbing. What Maximus just screamed at him was something only the bullies would say to him. It was one thing for the bullies to say that, but his father?

" _Maybe I WOULD be better off if I WAS an ordinary dog_ ," Hector thought. If Maximus would think so, then everyone would. However, Hector did remember what that mysterious dog he met said. " _No. That dog said that my destiny is to be the dog I was meant to be_ ," Hector reminded himself.

Before Chloe could say something, two female humans walked over to them and picked them up. Seeing Hector crying, the humans spoke to him in a comforting voice. Hector hardly understood anything they said, of course, but he assumed that they thought he was thinking too much about what happened earlier. The humans took them inside the house, and gave them a clean bill of health. After that, they set them down into their nest for the night.

Hector noticed that Maximus was not there. Although Daisy was there, he didn't bother to ask where Maximus was. Chloe did not either. Chloe fell asleep almost immediately after laying down. Hector tried to fall asleep, but it took a little while until he finally did.

Hector dreamt of the same full dark black void. But all he kept hearing were the very words his mysterious ancestor said to him. " _An enduring brilliant white light sent by the stars will accompany a divergent red light as they both glimmer through the power of time_." What could it mean? Could it have something to do with that nightmare?

Hector woke up, and it was still nighttime. He realized that although he had such a big day, he couldn't sleep, and decided to take a walk. He took a drink from the water bowl, and went inside the house. He entered the room where Hugo and Nick were usually in. They were sleeping on a perch.

"Hugo?", Hector asked, "Nick?"

Hugo and Nick woke up, apparently not in a very deep sleep. They slowly opened their eyes, and looked down at Hector.

"Hector?", Hugo yawned.

"What are you doing up?", Nick yawned.

"Can't sleep?", Hugo asked.

"Yeah," Hector answered. "I have way too much on my mind to sleep."

"Like what?", Nick asked.

Hector sighed. "Maximus and I had an argument."

"He punished you, didn't he?", Nick guessed. "That's what you get for breaking the rules, pup. Pay for it."

"He hurt my feelings," Hector said. "He yelled at me for reading a book."

Hugo and Nick looked at each other with baffled glances. They gave Hector a confused look.

"What does that have to do with what happened today?", Nick asked.

"It doesn't matter," Hector sighed. "He clearly stated that he wished I was born a normal dog."

Hugo sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. "Hector," he convinced. "Maximus could not have meant that."

"He did," Hector argued.

"No he didn't," Hugo argued back. "He was just angry with you. When someone gets angry at someone else, words they don't really mean can easily spill out of their mouth."

"Yeah," Nick agreed. "It is what humans like to call 'emptying their filter'."

"Emptying their filter?", Hector asked, confused.

"Maximus spoke without thinking about what he was saying," Hugo explained. "His fury took over him. You have to go talk to him."

"By now he should have calmed down," Nick added, with a hint of amusement.

"But where is he?", Hector asked. "He wasn't in our nest, and still isn't."

"I'll bet he's outside somewhere thinking about how guilty he is for saying that stuff to you," Nick suggested.

"Yeah," Hugo agreed. "He's probably too scared to go up to you and apologize."

"Go talk to him," Hugo and Nick both commanded Hector at the same time.

"Okay," Hector agreed, nodding his head.

Leaving Hugo and Nick to go back to sleep, Hector went outside to the dirt-place and made dirt while he was there. After a few moments, he heard something near the barn. It sounded like a mouse squeaking. He turned towards the sound, and spotted a cat killing a mouse. Although it was hard to see in the dark of night, he could recognize the scent.

"Bella?", Hector asked quietly, half to himself. He ran up to the cat, and the cat spun around, when she noticed the pup approaching.

"Hi, Bella," Hector greeted her.

Bella dropped the dead mouse on the ground. "Oh...hi Hector," she greeted back.

"Don't see you too often," Hector commented.

"Yeah, well, I do hunt at night. I am mostly nocturnal."

"Bandit and Misty hunt during the day?"

"We just hunt whenever we want to."

"You know why I asked?"

"Yes, I do, Hector," Bella answered, with a blank expression.

Hector perked his ears. "You do?"

"Yes. Bandit and Misty were not pleased when they smelled dog scent staining their dens."

"You heard about what happened today?", Hector asked nervously.

"Oh, please, Hector," Bella assured. "EVERYBODY knows about that!"

"Really?", Hector asked with embarrassment.

"Oh, yeah," Bella assured.

"So, it was Bandit and Misty who told Maximus and Daisy we were out in the woods?", Hector asked with uncertainty.

"Yep," Bella answered. She giggled. "They were pretty angry. They hate smelling dogs. And don't take it the wrong way, but I don't like the smell of dog, either."

Hector twitched his ears to the comment, but didn't really care. Maximus was the one who said something offending to him.

"It was crazy," Bella commented, still giggling. "After Bandit and Misty told them about your absence, they went absolutely crazy. They announced to all of the dogs in the barn, the horses, the parrots, barked assertively to the humans, alerted everyone."

Hector tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean by 'crazy'? You mean 'furious'?"

"No," Bella told him. "They were panicking, frightened. They were desperately calling out for help."

Hector tilted his head back up and gave an expression of wonder. His parents weren't angered by the news. They were FRIGHTENED by the news. "When did my parents come back?"

"It was not too long before sunset."

" _Before sunset_?", Hector asked himself in his mind. " _They were looking for us for that long_?" If they came back before sunset, maybe the humans somehow alerted the other humans who went that he and Chloe missed a meal, and were missing. "Where is Max?", he commanded.

"I think I saw him by the horse stable," Bella answered. "Why?"

"It was nice talking to you. Bye!", Hector said good-bye, and dashed off towards the horse stable.

"Bye!", Bella called after him in response, and picked up her hunted mouse, carrying it somewhere to eat it.

When Hector finally made it to the horse place, he stopped in front of the fence and took a few moments to rest. Went he got back up, he walked underneath the fence, and within another few moments, he froze and gasped, as there was Maximus. He was laying on the grass, with his head tilted up towards the night sky, his eyes shut, and his nose sniffing the air. Hector slowly crept towards him.

"Max?", Hector asked quietly and nervously, after he reached him.

Maximus perked his ears, but did not move. He clearly sensed Hector's presence long before he reached him. "Hector? What are you doing up?", Maximus asked, calmly with no anger in his voice.

"I couldn't sleep," Hector answered. Maximus looked so calm, it was as if the fight never happened. "What are you doing?"

"Meditating."

"What's meditating?"

Maximus opened his eyes, and gave Hector an expression of confusion. "Well...it's...hmm...," he tried to think. He sighed. "It's difficult to explain."

"Oh," Hector sighed, with a look of disappointment.

Seeing Hector's expression, Maximus's expression turned more sympathetic. "I'm hearing, smelling, and feeling, all at the same time," Maximus decided to answer. "I am trying to communicate with...", Maximus suddenly hesitated to finish. He sighed.

After a moment of silence, Hector spoke again. "I'm really sorry about what I did today," Hector apologized.

Maximus sighed in response.

"Are you still mad at me?", Hector asked nervously.

Maximus sighed again, shaking his head, staring at the soil. "I'm not mad at you, Hector."

"You're not?"

"No. I'm just very disappointed in you."

Hector sighed guiltily.

"You deliberately disobeyed me, and you put Chloe in serious danger!", Maximus scolded, but in a calm voice. He turned to look at Hector. "Easily, you two could have been...", Maximus broke off again, as if he was now watching what he was saying, unlike before. He chose something else to say. "I make these rules for a reason, Hector."

"It's to keep me safe, isn't it?"

"Yes. I knew something could have easily happened to you in the woods. That's why I wouldn't let you go in there."

"I'm sorry, Max. I'm sorry I lied to you."

"I'm sorry, too, Hector. I am so sorry I was so hard on you."

"I deserved it."

"No you didn't. You're only a puppy. Puppies will make mistakes. But the thing is, they learn from their mistakes, so that they don't make them again when they are dogs."

"You mean I can never go back to the woods?"

"No, of course you can. But you're much too young right now. We can go out there together in a couple moons, when you're a little older. But for right now, it's just too dangerous!"

"Buster, Owen, and Gavin go into the woods all the time."

Maximus gave Hector a look of shock and uncertainty. "Well then, Mary and Ethan want to raise pups a different way. Not the way I approve of."

"Do you know those two dogs well?"

"Yes. We used to be friends, but, we're not anymore."

"Why not?"

Maximus's expression was now turning into grief in response. "Let's just not talk about this, Hector."

"Do you really think I should just be an ordinary dog?"

Maximus twitched his ears, and spoke in an assuring tone. "No, Hector! I'm so sorry I said those terrible things to you. You know I didn't really mean it, right?"

Hector gave Maximus a look of sadness. "You really hurt my feelings."

"Yeah, I know," Maximus agreed, with his voice full of guilt and regret. "I'm sorry pal. I just lost my temper."

"But you said you weren't really MAD at me," Hector recalled.

"I wasn't Hector," Maximus admitted. He sighed, and took several moments of silence to look at the stars twinkling in the sky. He finally spoke again, in an assuring voice, looking at Hector straight in the eye. "Hector...Bandit and Misty told me and Daisy that you two were in the woods somewhere."

"I know. Bella just told me."

"When we were told that, we were FRIGHTENED. We were scared to death that something terrible happened to you and Chloe!"

Hector tilted his head as he listened.

"We were panicking!", Maximus assured. "We ordered the pack to go and find you both. The parrots flew ahead and spotted you two in the river. Knowing they couldn't stop your water monster, they flew back to the pack, and told us."

"Really?", Hector asked.

Maximus continued on. "As we all headed towards the river, Daisy and I heard you two screaming, and we jumped into the water just in time. Chloe managed to hang on to a branch, and Daisy went and grabbed her. I dove deep into the water, and grabbed you, and carried you back up to the surface. The humans helped pull us out after they helped pull out Daisy and Chloe."

"So, it was you who was grabbing me," Hector understood.

"Yes! And when I finally placed you on the ground, all of us panicked, because you were unconscious. We were so afraid that..."

When Maximus broke off again, Hector thought back to that time. The only thing he remembered was being grabbed by who he now knew was Maximus, and then somehow waking up in a mysterious beautiful field of white light. "I thought grown-ups weren't scared of anything," Hector responded.

"Quite the contrary. All adults get scared, just like their young."

"Oh," Hector responded. "I guess, even alphas can get scared, huh?"

"Yes," Maximus chuckled.

"But you know what?"

"What?"

"I bet if Buster, Owen, and Gavin fell into the river, they'd be even MORE scared!"

Maximus chuckled softly. "Yeah? You think so?"

Hector nodded, and they both chuckled.

"Max?"

"Yeah?"

Hector chuckled again. "We're pals, right?"

Maximus chuckled again, too. "Right."

"And no matter what happens, we will ALWAYS be together, right?"

Maximus gave Hector a look of both curiosity and concern in response. "Mmm...", he wondered.

"What is it?", Hector asked.

After a few moments of silence, Maximus spoke again. "Hector?"

"Yeah?"

"I want to tell you a little story that's been passed down for a long time."

"Okay."

Maximus looked up, and Hector did too. "Look up at the stars. Somewhere out there in the sky, somewhere so far away, that it cannot be seen by any living creature, is another world."

"Another world?"

"It's most notable place is a huge beautiful golden meadow."

Hector perked his ears and tilted his head. "A golden meadow?"

"Yes. It is warm and perfect weather all the time, and just beyond the meadow is a giant colorful rainbow that leads up into its sky."

"Really? What's this world for?"

Maximus hesitated, changing his expression to concerned. "That is...", he paused, and sighed. "That is where the souls of animals go when they die."

Hector's eyes were filled with fascination and wonder. "Really?"

"Yes. All animals go there, but domesticated animals, like you and me, who live with humans, go right to the meadow place. When you get there, you are given a new body, a beautiful one, young and healthy, and keep it forever."

"And you live in that world forever?"

Maximus nodded, and continued on. "The rainbow is special. When your owner dies, he or she reunites with you on the meadow, and you walk up the rainbow together, and enter the heavenly place humans go to when they die."

"Wow."

"All of our ancestors live up there in that other world, and look down on us from those stars."

Hector gasped. "Wow. Really?"

"They watch over all of us."

"Wow...", Hector sighed.

"I never told your siblings this story. I only told you."

"Why me?"

"Because, I'm so sorry about what I said to you today. You HAVE to read. You HAVE to follow your dreams. Your ancestors know your destiny."

Hector froze in shock at what Maximus just said. " _My destiny_?", he thought.

"What you need to know Hector, is that whenever you feel lost, hopeless, and alone, just remember that your ancestors will ALWAYS be there to guide you, and so will everyone you love."

"Okay," Hector agreed.

Maximus yawned. "Do you want to head back to the barn?"

Hector yawned too. "Yeah, I'm pretty tired now, too."

"Let's go," Maximus suggested, getting up, and stretching, digging his claws into the soil.

"Our ancestors," Hector asked. "Are they who you were trying to communicate with in meditating?"

"Yes," Maximus answered. "They speak to you in several ways."

"Oh," Hector responded. There was so much he wanted to talk about to his father, but this wasn't the right time. It was the middle of the night, and they were both very tired. "So, does this mean I can read? I'm not grounded now, right?"

Maximus twitched his head in response. "Well, I guess I won't punish you. Mistakes are how you learn. But, you BETTER obey me from now on. Will you forgive me?"

"Yes, Dad," Hector proudly stated. "I forgive you."

"I forgive you, too, my son," Maximus responded proudly. He licked and nuzzled his son affectionately, and gently picked him up in his jaws, and carried him as he took the long hike back to the barn.

On the way back to the barn, so many questions ran around in Hector's mind. Maximus kept hesitating to mention what Hector now believed was "death". A freezing cold chill went down his back when he now thought about his encounter with the mysterious dog that apparently was an ancestor of his. " _If all my ancestors live in that other world, does that mean I was IN that other world_?", Hector thought. The mysterious dog mentioned the word "die", and the quote "you have to go back". " _Did I actually drown and have a near-death experience today? Did my ancestors send me back to this world? So I can fulfill my prophecy? Did I DIE_?", he continued to think. The scary thoughts were reminding Hector once again of that nightmare that he had. The dog also warned that Hector might have to go through "pain and suffering" to fulfill his prophecy. " _Did that dog indirectly state that that dream was warning of a "pain and suffering" that I will have to go through in the future to follow my destiny_?", Hector thought again. That eerie thought made Hector tremble. Was an extreme misery really on its way? If so, what could it possibly be? And when will it happen?

When they were in the nest, Hector put the thoughts aside for then, and fell asleep quickly, without another dream.


	16. The Open Path To The Future

"So, does everyone understand?", Maximus announced. "Is everyone clear on that?"

Uncertain murmurs came from the pack of dogs.

"I will say it one more time," Maximus continued. "Pups are NOT allowed to enter the forest until they are six moons old!"

"We cannot let something like this happen again!" Daisy added, sitting next to Maximus. "Now, say yes!", she demanded to the pack.

Most of the dogs of the pack agreed "yes", but a few of them did not.

"Okay," Maximus responded.

A few moments went by, and an angered, disapproving voice broke the brief silence. "I totally disagree!"

Hector turned to see who it was, and it was Ethan.

"Our pups often went into those woods with us, and nothing happened to THEM!", Ethan continued to argue angrily.

"Just because nothing happened to your pups," Maximus responded, in a disapproving, almost threatening tone, "That does not mean there wasn't a big risk in..."

"They were with US," Mary, Ethan's mate, sitting next to him, added in Ethan's same tone. "We observed everything they did, to be sure that they would not get into any kind of trouble."

"But, that does not make...", Daisy responded in Maximus's same tone.

"OUR pups are bigger, stronger, faster, smarter...", Ethan continued.

"We are not saying...", Maximus responded.

"They will NOT get lost or trapped or scared or in any sort of trouble when THEY are in those woods!", Mary continued. "They KNOW how to take care of themselves, anyway!"

"As much as we would be...", Maximus continued.

"If you ask me, the strongest and biggest pups, OUR pups, should be allowed into the woods, because THEY are ALREADY their six moon size!", Ethan continued.

"We chose six moons...", Daisy continued.

"If this whole six moon thing is about size, then it should NOT apply to OUR pups!", Ethan continued.

"Why do you think...", Daisy continued.

"It's just that WEAK DEFECTIVE RUNT!", Ethan shouted even louder and more aggressively.

"HE is the ONLY PUP on this ENTIRE FARM that would get into that sort of danger!", Mary added, also louder and more aggressively.

"WE ARE YOUR LEADERS, AND OUR DECISION IS FINAL! YOUR PUPS WILL NOT ENTER THE WOODS AGAIN UNTIL THEY ARE SIX MOONS OLD!", Maximus aggressively shouted and spat back at them.

"THAT'S FINAL!", Daisy added.

"THAT is a piece of dung!", Mary spat back.

"That would never happen to any other pups!", Ethan added.

"IF YOU TWO DO NOT SHOW RESPECT RIGHT NOW, YOU TWO WILL GET INTO BIG TROUBLE WITH ME!", Maximus spat back.

"Our decision is final," Daisy added, in a quieter volume. "The leaders make the decisions here."

The surrounding dogs all were gaping and in complete shock and some with fear or anger in their expressions. Several moments of silence went by after Ethan and Mary growled, and then went quiet, not wanting to argue with the leaders anymore.

Hector was pretty embarrassed, as he knew that Ethan and Mary were talking about him. He felt very scared, knowing that his littermates would REALLY hate him now, as this new rule was made because of his incident with the river.

Maximus finally spoke again, in a calm voice with no more anger, dismissing the pack.

Hector was sitting next to Chloe and Cocoa. As Chloe gave a worried expression, Cocoa commented with amusement and sarcasm, "Nice work, Runt," as he padded off.

Hector sighed. He looked at Chloe, but she did not say anything, and after a moment of hesitation, she padded off to join Cocoa. Hector got up, turned around, and as he began to walk, he looked around, and spotted his littermates. To Hector's fear, they gave him threatening expressions of fury and growled at him. They murmured to each other something, but Hector was not close enough to hear what they were saying. Hector just continued on his way back to the barn, staying far away from them, very worried about what they were saying, which obviously was about him.

It was the night after the incident in the forest. Maximus and Daisy waited until night to give a meeting to the pack where the horses live, so that the humans would not be present. Maximus and Daisy wanted to be sure that what happened to him and Chloe would not happen to any other pups. There were plenty more on the way. Daisy's best friends, Ginger and Zoey, were pregnant. During the day, Hector had been reading books, as he still had energy to get back from the previous day's adventure.

As time has gone by for a few weeks, Hector's voice has changed, and he did grow bigger, but was still much smaller than the other pups.

When Hector finally made it to his nest, he immediately fell asleep.

Hector sniffed the surrounding atmosphere, and his eyes flew open when he smelled something revolting. He looked around, but could see absolutely nothing. It was just complete black all around him. Hector then felt the sensation of extreme heat, and he began to pant. " _Oh, no!_ ", Hector thought in horror, " _Am I in that nightmare again_?"

Hector sniffed the odor again. It smelled like something burning, and the scent was very strong. It filled his nostrils, and Hector almost felt nauseated by it. He continued to pant to the heat as it got hotter and hotter in the place. He was startled when he heard what sounded like very loud thunder, and then shrieks of dogs in pain. The terrifying noises screamed around him for several moments.

Hector woke up, still panting, and shaking in terror, in his nest. It was very early in the morning, and he heard the sounds of several dogs snoozing, a few yawning and getting up. Maximus and Daisy were not in the nest, so they were already up and outside. Hector calmed down, realizing it was just another nightmare. Hector could not believe that he had another nightmare, and it was actually quite similar to the nightmare he had had before. He yawned, and got up and stretched. He was now convinced that his nightmare had something to do with what the ancestor told him. Although he was feeling that there was a need to tell someone about his talk with the ancestor, he thought it might be difficult to tell someone that, and it would not be for sure how that someone would react. Regardless, he knew he had to tell somebody. He was thinking Maximus, but also Sebastian or Chloe. Trying to put the negative thoughts out of his mind for a while, he took a drink from the water bowl, and went outside. He felt he had now regained more energy, and decided to do something outside. When Hector trotted towards the porch, he spotted Chloe chewing on a squeaky toy on a step. She perked her ears and stopped chewing, looking towards Hector, detecting his presence.

"Good morning, Chloe," Hector greeted.

"Hi," Chloe greeted back.

"I feel like I have my energy back from that trip," Hector commented. "What about you?"

"Yeah," Chloe agreed, with amusement. "Did you want to do something outside, today?"

"Sure," Hector replied. "I could use the fresh air."

"What did you have in mind?", Chloe asked excitedly.

Before Hector could answer, the sounds of humans yelling angrily came from inside the house.

"What was that about, you think?" Chloe asked.

"I don't know," Hector responded, unsure what to make of it. "Something made them angry."

"Hey," Chloe suggested. "Do you want to go swimming in the pool area, today?"

"Sure! Is it open this early?"

"There were a few humans monitoring some rescued dogs last night. They will probably open it by the time we get there."

"Good, let's be the first ones there, then! I better leave until the humans might try and give me that eye torment again."

Hector and Chloe ran off towards the play-place, giggling with excitement. Hector remembered how furious of a look Buster gave him last night, but he did not want to worry about that right now. He wanted to do something that would get his mind off of that and the nightmare.

As Chloe expected, by the time they reached a gate to the play-place, there was already a human standing there, opening it up. He gave Hector and Chloe an amused look and spoke to them in an amused tone. The two pups darted inside, and headed straight for the water, sliding across the slippery tile ground.

When they reached the wave pool, they halted in front of it, looking at the oddly colored and scented water. They looked at each other with excited expressions.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?", Chloe asked.

"I should try that water slide over there?", Hector responded, pointing his tail towards a giant one nearby.

"Yes!", Chloe replied, and they dashed towards the very high brown wooden set of steps that led up to the slide.

The slide was 100 feet tall, and was a straight steep angle down. They heard the sounds of humans running through the pool area, and one of them was headed towards their direction. The human passed them, and hurried up the stairs. Chloe and Hector followed him up the steps, and the human was slowing down by the time he was half way. Hector and Chloe were too, as it was a lot of steps to climb. When they finally reached the top, the human knelt down and put an object around their heads, that cover their eyes up. Then the human went to turn on the jets of the water slide.

"I forgot!", Chloe responded to the objects. "Humans put these on us to protect our eyes, since the water is a little different."

Hector nodded.

They excitedly walked over to the top of the slide, hopped in, and looked down at the pool below. It shone with the sun, which was now fully lighting the sky.

"You ready?", Chloe asked.

"Together?", Hector responded.

Chloe nodded, and they positioned themselves in a seated position, and counted down to 1 from 5. As they slid rapidly down the very steep slide, they squealed with excitement and entertainment, with their paws up. When they reached the bottom, which was 10 feet above the pool water, they flew across the pool, and finally landed under the water, making a splash. They swam back up to the surface, and giggled, swimming back to shore to try another one, shaking some water off their pelts.

"Hey, let's try those water slides in the back!", Hector suggested, wagging his tail.

They raced across the tile ground towards the water slides in the back of the play-area. Along the way, a row of small fountains shot out of the ground, startling Hector. They chased each other, running in a pattern of circles around the small fountains. Giggling happily, they were gliding across the wet slippery tile ground. Chloe took in some water from the fountain and spit it onto Hector's face. Hector did it back, and then they splashed each other in the face by batting at the fountain water with their paws. When they reached the slides, there was one that had four connected to each other, two of them bare, and two of them with a tunnel. They were 150 feet tall and steep. They climbed up the wooden steps of the fort, but took a break half-way.

They stopped to relax for a moment. Humans were already up there waiting. They turned and looked across the pool area. Several dogs were already running through, hopping into the pools with their objects on their faces. More humans were there too, throwing balls into the water, with the dogs chasing after them.

"How does the pool make it more exciting to fetch balls?", Hector asked.

Chloe just shook her head slowly disapprovingly, and nudged him to keep climbing.

When they finally reached the top, they felt tired after the long climb. They panted and sat down next to the fence around the fort, and looked down below again. It was a better view from the top.

"These forts will be easier and faster to climb when we get bigger," Chloe chuckled.

"It's a good thing that I have been growing," Hector responded. "Not by much right now, but..."

"By the time you reach six moons, you will be much bigger," Chloe finished.

"Yeah," Hector agreed.

"Tube or open slide?", Chloe asked.

"Tube!", Chloe and Hector answered at the same time with amusement.

They dashed to the other side of the fort top, and each of them hopped onto the top of the tube slides, the water jets ready to propel them forward.

"You ready?", Chloe stated.

Hector nodded.

"One, two, THREE!", they counted together, then pushed themselves down the slide.

As they slid down, they saw nothing, as the tube slides were all black. They squealed with excitement, their stomachs feeling lifted up by the speed. Hector was almost reminded of his nightmare because of the black darkness, but thought nothing of it.

When they reached the bottom, they exited the tube onto the horizontal bare part of the slide, and slid rapidly across it, then landed into the connected pool. When they went to the shore, they saw other dogs climbing up the steps. Hector and Chloe sat and watched for a few moments, amused by the tiring work. Hector thought for a moment and realized there was something he forgot to do.

"Hey, Chloe," he asked, "Did you eat this morning?"

Chloe chuckled. "No. Did you?"

"No. The humans do feed us here, too, right?"

"Yes."

"Where do they do that?"

"I'll show you. Follow me."

Chloe guided Hector to a structure that resembled a hut but with no walls, just the roof and the legs that held it up. Next to it, were humans with hoses. Under the structure, there were bowls full of chow and a large bowl of water. One of the humans caught their attention by tapping on two of the bowls. The human whistled and called them over by their names. Hector knew why. They padded over.

"Puppy chow, adult chow, what's the big difference?", Hector asked.

"We probably can't fit the adult chow in our throats," Chloe chuckled.

They both ate from the bowls, and took a drink of water from another.

"I really should start begging," Hector commented.

Chloe was watching the dogs play fetch in the wave pool. "You really don't want to, do you?", she asked Hector, with amusement in her eyes.

"You want to, don't you?", Hector responded.

Chloe nodded.

Hector turned and looked at the playground behind the structure. Several dogs were playing there as well. "You go ahead. I'll take a break from the climbing," Hector answered, amused.

Chloe ran to a human carrying a green ball, and yipped excitedly. As she went to play fetch in the water, Hector started to walk towards the playground. When he touched the grass, he heard another human call out his name again. She signaled for him to come. He obeyed, and when he reached her, she immediately took a hose, and rinsed him off with its water for a few moments. He did not get what the point of that was, as he was already wet. She then took the object that was on his face off, and it did feel nice to have it off. It was even harder to see out of it.

He then ran off to the playground, and heard Ginger and Zoey call out his name, and turned to see them relaxing underneath one of the forts in the shade. He padded over and laid down next to them. Ginger was mostly ginger, with a little white, and Zoey was black and tan.

"Hi," Hector greeted. "Did you want to tell me something?"

"You remember the meeting last night, right?", Ginger asked.

"Yes," Hector replied, in a dumbfounded tone. "What about it?"

"Well," Zoey responded. "Don't give yourself so much credit for that rule being made."

"It was because of me they made that rule," Hector disagreed.

"No, no, no," Ginger persuaded. "We know Maximus and Daisy had that on their minds for a long time."

"Seriously?" Hector responded.

"Yes," Zoey added.

"Then how come they did not declare it a rule before?", Hector asked.

"Because the original rule was that pups must be accompanied by an adult," Zoey explained.

"And Maximus and Daisy felt that it may have been okay for different dams and sires to choose the way they want to raise their offspring," Ginger added.

"Provided that they and their pups still followed the rules," Zoey added.

"But is it not a coincidence that they created this new rule right after my incident?", Hector argued.

"Well, they want to protect you, Hector," Ginger responded. "But they also want to protect the future pups on the farm."

"Like ours," Zoey added. "We will be having our pups before we know it."

"And it does not hurt to make a new protective rule for them," Ginger added.

"So you're saying that they were going to make this rule anyway?", Hector responded, "Before your pups come?"

"Yeah," Zoey added. "Your actions convinced them to do that, but..."

"They think there will be more runts like me on the way," Hector responded blankly. "Each of you will have a runt in your litter."

Ginger and Zoey looked at each other with worried glances. Hector did wonder if they were concerned one of their pups would in fact be a runt.

"I have had a runt before, Hector," Ginger responded.

"You have?", Hector asked.

"Look," Zoey convinced. "If someone comes up to you and says he or she hates you for this new rule, then he or she is the one showing dishonor. Not you."

"Besides," Ginger added, "You and your siblings will be six moons old before you even know it."

"And you will be looking down at our pups," Zoey added with amusement. "When you reach the end of your first four seasons, you won't even remember being this small, because you will be so big."

"Hmm," Hector responded, with slight agreement.

"And you will have pups of your own later in your life," Zoey added.

Hector gave them a odd expression.

The two dams looked at each other and chuckled.

"What?", Hector asked.

"Provided you mate with Chloe, of course," Zoey chuckled.

"Chloe?", Hector asked.

"You may not think it now, Hector," Ginger chuckled. "But it will happen someday."

"Does EVERYONE on the farm think Chloe should be my mate when I grow up?", Hector asked doubtfully.

The two dams just laughed, got up, and padded away. "See you, Hector," Ginger said in between her giggles.

"Yeah, see you," Zoey added.

"Wow," Hector quietly stated, half to himself.

Hector got up and walked out from underneath the fort. He heard another dog call out his name. It was Deputy.

"How many more times will my name be called out today?", Hector asked himself.

Deputy ran over to Hector with a concerned expression on his face.

"What's the matter, Coach Deputy?", Hector asked.

"There's...um...well...", Deputy stammered. He sighed. "There's something I need to tell you."

"Okay."

"I'm not sure how to tell you this, so, I think I should just show you."

"What happened?", Hector demanded.

"Just come with me," Deputy persuaded.

Deputy began to pad off, signaling with his tail for Hector to follow. Hector did, but was quite worried at what bad news he was going to be informed of.

"Where are we going?", Hector asked.

Deputy did not answer, but they kept going. To Hector's confusion and disapproval, he was wasting energy going all the way back towards the barn. On the way, several humans were giving him a stern and angry stare, and it scared him. " _Was it something I did_?", Hector thought with concern.

When they reached the porch in front of the house, Deputy paused in front of the flap, and turned towards Hector.

"Prepare yourself, pup," Deputy told Hector.

Deputy entered into the house, and Hector followed. Deputy was sitting on the carpet at the edge and corner and was watching something closely.

Hector stepped into the room to see what Deputy was looking at, and as Hector looked, he froze in shock at what he saw. Scattered all over the room, in piles, were the pages of all the books from the shelves! All of the books had no pages left in them! The books were on the ground, and all of their pages were shredded with bite marks and laid all across the room, on the carpet and on the furniture!

Hector could only gape and stare at what he was seeing for several moments. He finally looked at Deputy. A wave of sadness came over him, and he begun to whimper. "How...how did this happen?", Hector whimpered to Deputy.

"I don't know who did this, Hector," Deputy responded, sympathy in his eyes. "But it looks as though more than one dog did this."

Hector walked over the piles of pages, and recognized ones with large pictures. He looked at one of the books, and saw how the pages were shredded, and even the books were chewed up. Hector turned back towards Deputy, but he was walking out of the house.

"I'm sorry," Deputy stated quietly as he walked out. "Truly I am."

Hector heard the sound of footsteps coming from the hallway. He gasped as he saw the master walk into the room. He gave Hector a furious stare, and spoke to him in a loud, angry, scolding tone. Hector's tail drooped. The master snatched Hector in his hand, and stormed off outside carrying him. The master took Hector into the small house of kennels, and nearly threw him into one of the kennels, and locked it. Hector heard the translated term "Bad dog!" coming from the master as he stormed out.

Hector cried. "But...but...but I didn't do it, master!", he sobbed. " _I didn't do it_!", Hector stated in his mind.

Hector continued to sob for a little while, but then took a drink of water from the kennel's bowl, and dug his head to the wall at the back of the kennel, and just sat there in that position in deep thought.

After what felt like eternity, Hector finally heard someone entering through the half-open door. He heard giggling, and he knew who it was.

"Well, well, well," Buster commented, amused, "Look who's here stranded in a kennel!"

Hector turned around, and walked to the front of the kennel. All of his littermates were there.

"How did you guys know I was here?", Hector demanded.

"Oh, pretty simple, Runt," Buster answered. "We just sniffed out the trail of the accused, and followed that path."

"YOU GUYS WERE THE ONES WHO DID THAT!", Hector shouted in a threatening tone.

"Surprised, Runt?", Owen asked.

"Why would you do that?", Hector demanded angrily.

"If WE can't do OUR favorite hobby, going out into the woods..." Owen answered.

"Then YOU can't do YOUR favorite hobby either!", Buster finished.

"But, but...", Hector began to protest.

"If it wasn't for your flea-brained actions," Audrey stated.

"Then we would be riding horses through the meadow today!", Layla finished.

"It's YOUR fault this rule was made, Runt!", Gavin added.

"Now, you know how WE feel about OUR hobby being stripped away from us!", Buster added.

"LITERALLY!", Owen added.

"I was NOT the one who suggested that rule!", Hector protested. "In fact, I am AGAINST it!"

His littermates giggled.

"You're absolutely right, Runt," Owen stated.

"The rule should ONLY apply to RUNTS like YOU!", Buster taunted.

His littermates laughed hard.

Hector's tail drooped. He was embarrassed. He actually did believe that the rule focused on the few small and weak pups.

"Now you can read that marking language NO MORE!", Audrey taunted.

"No dog would care except for you!", Layla added.

Hector felt he was going to whimper again, feeling completely helpless against them.

"Now, don't worry about us, Runt," Gavin taunted.

"WE obviously won't get in trouble with the humans!", Audrey added.

"What dogs would do anything with those so-called BOOKS?", Owen added.

"The only dog who could POSSIBLY be responsible is the only dog that actually touches those things!", Layla added.

"You can't talk to humans, Runt," Buster added. "They will never suspect we had anything to do with it!"

"They will never know!", Owen added.

His littermates laughed hard again as they went back outside.

"See you later, Runt," Buster said on his way out. "And don't even think about telling on us to any dog, because if you do, it won't just be your dreams getting crushed!", he threatened Hector with amusement, and padded out to join the others.

Hector sat there helplessly as he realized what his littermates were thinking about last night after the meeting, and what the commotion was about that morning heard from the porch. He knew they were up to something, but he wasn't sure what it was until he learned now. They were, unfortunately, certainly right about the humans blaming him for this. He knew that this new rule would cause even more hate for him then what had already existed.

Hector sighed, took another drink, and laid down on the floor as he waited for a human to take him out.

Before too long, Hector had been taken out of his time-out, and spent the rest of the day hiding downstairs in the basement, playing with the drum set, some other human objects down there, and watching the DVDs, even though he was at the point of reading actual books, only coming upstairs for food and water. He did not want to be near anyone else during the rest of the day. Upstairs, the humans had been cleaning up the giant mess.

By sunset, Hector finally went back into the barn, and as he was walking through, Sebastian went up beside him. Hector was walking with his tail drooped, head down, and with a sad expression. Sebastian took the notice.

"Why, Hector," Sebastian asked, with concern. "What be the matter?"

"Nothing," Hector replied.

"I know something is troubling you, Hector."

"No."

"Why don't you come up to the garden roof with me?"

Hector sighed. "Okay."

Hector followed his grandfather up the steps, and into the garden. His grandmother was up there as well, and they laid with her.

"Good evening, Hector," Charlotte greeted. "Why do you look so glum?", she asked, taking notice of Hector's expressions as well.

"Is there something you would like to tell us about, Hector?", Sebastian asked.

"Yes," Hector sighed.

A moment of silence went by. Sebastian perked his ears. "Hector, we can't hear you unless you speak up."

After a moment of hesitation, Hector spoke. "Sebastian, do you remember when I told you about that nightmare that you said could be an omen?"

"Yes," Sebastian recalled.

"Sebastian told me about that dream," Charlotte added.

"Well," Hector continued, "I sort of had it again."

"Really?", Sebastian asked. "What do you mean 'sort of'?"

"It was smaller, but it was the same subject," Hector explained. "I could tell."

"That is a telltale sign that it's an omen from your ancestors then, Hector," Sebastian stated.

"You mean, it will come true?", Hector asked.

"It may just be a metaphor for something, Hector," Sebastian stated. "It doesn't necessarily mean whatever was in the dream was literal."

"Well," Hector sighed. "There is something even more important to tell you, but, I hope you'll believe me."

"Of course we'll believe you, Hector," Charlotte persuaded. "Please tell us."

Hector went silent for a few moments. He felt it was time to reveal his secret to someone. Sighing again, he finally spoke again.

"An ancestor appeared to me face to face and talked to me," Hector told them.

His grandparents' ears perked and their eyes widened, but they looked more interested than shocked.

"When did this happen?", Sebastian asked.

"When I...", Hector hesitated. "I was in the river, and I remembered nothing between then and being laid out on the ground next to the river."

Now their eyes looked shocked.

"I woke up in a beautiful place, and a dog appeared to me, and he said that he was an ancestor of mine," Hector continued.

"What did he tell you?", Charlotte asked.

"He told me that I have a prophecy."

"What was the prophecy?", Sebastian asked.

Hector remembered the exact words. "An enduring brilliant white light sent by the stars will accompany a divergent red light as they both glimmer through the power of time," Hector stated.

"Wow," Charlotte responded.

"That is amazing," Sebastian added.

"What do you think it means?", Hector asked.

"You won't really know until you fulfill it, Hector," Sebastian replied.

That sounded like something the ancestor told him. "Well, if I have no idea what it is, how will I know when I fulfill it?"

"You just will, Hector," Sebastian assured.

"You know," Charlotte recalled. "Your father fulfilled a great prophecy."

Hector's ears perked and his eyes widened. "Maximus?"

Charlotte and Sebastian nodded.

"What was it?", Hector asked.

"Maximus saved the lives of several dogs," Sebastian explained.

"Really?", Hector asked, astonished.

"Yes," Charlotte answered. "He saved many pups that are now adult dogs."

"He saved Deputy's life when he was attacked by a black bear," Sebastian added.

"A bear?", Hector asked, shocked.

"Not in these woods, of course," Charlotte chuckled. "Maximus has traveled to different forests."

"Bigger ones," Sebastian added.

"And it was because of his acts of heroism that he became the male leader," Charlotte added.

"After his father?", Hector asked.

"Yes," Sebastian answered. "His father was the previous male leader."

"How come he never told me about this?", Hector asked.

"Well," Sebastian sighed. "Dogs do not often choose to share their prophecies with their pups when they are young."

"But, look at you," Charlotte added.

"You got a prophecy at such a young age," Sebastian added. "And it is incredible!"

"In fact, Max was still performing his prophecy with you when he...", Charlotte stated, but then broke off as if she knew she said something she shouldn't have.

"Huh?", Hector asked, confused.

Sebastian and Charlotte looked at each other, and immediately decided to call it a night.

"I think it's about time you went to sleep, Hector," Sebastian suggested.

"Yeah," Hector agreed, yawning. "You're right. I'm going back inside the barn."

"Okay, good night," Charlotte said.

"Good night," Hector said back.

Hector turned and padded back into the barn, to his nest. Too many questions were still unanswered. " _What will become of my prophecy? What are my nightmares telling me? What is the connection between them? How will they affect my future_?", he thought. It was as if a new path had opened up to guide him to his future. He laid down in his nest next to Chloe and went to sleep for the night.


	17. The Petrifying Blood Red Omen

Hector woke up in his nest. He looked around, and realized it was the middle of the night, and all the dogs were still asleep. He yawned, and, feeling thirsty, silently crept over to the water bowl and took a few sips. While he was drinking, somehow, the water started feeling warmer. He stopped, and thought for a second, confused. After a moment of hesitation, he reached his paw out to touch the water, but as soon as he touched the tip of the water, he yelped in pain and jerked his arm away, because the water was very hot. He glanced around to see if he woke someone up, but they were all still sound asleep, as if the yelp he had shouted out loudly was not able to be heard.

After a moment, he peered over the water bowl to look at the now very hot water, and to his complete shock, it turned into the color red! As soon as he saw it, the water bowl began to turn red as well, and he gasped and jerked away when he felt the bowl get warmer. He took a few steps back, his mouth gaped open.

After another moment, he gasped in horror that the color red seemed to begin to spread across the floor beneath the water bowl, and get on the surrounding straw. He, his mouth open wider, started to breathe heavily, and back away quickly from the rapidly spreading red. He glanced around, and saw the nearby sleeping dogs turning red as well. To his shock, they continued to sleep, taking no notice or feeling to it. Thinking that the red straw was not hot, he touched the red straw, but yelped in pain again as he felt the same burning sensation. He raced to the barn door, the red straw almost trapping him along the side of the barn.

He ran out the barn door, but when he looked up at the sky, there were no stars or the moon in sight. All it was was a giant ominous black cloud! He turned around, and first thought the red would spread to the grass, but instead, it climbed up and slowly began to cover up the entire barn. He heard the sound of thunder from the cloud. A warm breeze swept through the air.

He heard the sound of someone or something walking in the grass. He turned to look towards the sound, and gasped in horror as he saw a few figures. They resembled adult male humans, but instead of a face, they had just a skull! They were whistling an eerie tune, and carried large sticks over their shoulder. He froze when he saw them walking towards him, but they turned and walked past the garden.

" _Where are they going_?", he thought. He started to trot after them, but froze again when he noticed movement from the corner of his eye. He turned to look towards the front of the dirt-place, and to his relief, he spotted the four cats leaping on top of the nearby fence.

Not wanting the mysterious humans to hear him, Hector quickly ran over to where the cats were sitting down on the fence, having a small conversation. "Hey, guys?", Hector began, "Down here!"

The cats, for some reason, did not respond. "Guys!", Hector said again.

The cats did not even turn to look towards him, as if they hadn't heard him.

"CATS!", Hector exclaimed. "What is going on here? Did you see those humans?"

The cats still payed no attention to Hector. "Why aren't you guys answering?", Hector yelled, angry.

After a few moments, Hector realized that the cats really must not have heard him. It was not uncommon for the cats to be rude to the dogs, but this did not seem right. " _Can't they hear me_?", Hector thought.

To be for certain, Hector climbed up the fence, and stood behind Bear. Hector took his paw and pushed Bear's back.

"What the dung?," Bear exclaimed, quickly turning around towards Hector, almost jumping. The cats went silent for a moment. Bear glanced around, with a shocked expression. "What was that?"

"What happened?", Misty asked.

"Something just touched me!", Bear exclaimed.

"But, Bear...", Bella responded in disbelief, "There's nothing there."

Hector perked his ears, and pushed Bear's chest.

"Ah!", Bear yelped, his pupils growing larger. "It touched me again!"

"What touched you?", Misty asked.

"There's no one here, flea-brain," Bandit responded.

Hector touched Bear's nose.

Bear almost jumped. "Something keeps touching me, I swear to the ancestors!"

"That's a load of dung," Bandit responded.

Bear swiped his paw towards Hector, and Hector yelped as Bear knocked him onto the ground. "Now I touched something!", Bear exclaimed.

"Move," Bandit commanded Bear, about to push him off the fence.

Bear jumped down, and looked back up. Bandit was standing in the place where Hector was, and he walked briefly across the fence. "You see, mouse-brain," Bandit stated impatiently to Bear. "There is nothing here!"

Bear shook his head in confusion. Hector was watching in shock. The cats really did not see or hear him. Hector hurried off to look for the scary humans.

As he was racing across the garden fence, it was red, and so was the house near the barn, and the grass was turning red as well! He kept running as fast as he could, still feeling the very warm breeze with the dark cloud above. When he was running across the fence of the play-place, heading towards the horse-place, he froze and gasped in horror when he saw the nearby wave pool. It was no longer filled with water. It was filled with blood! Actual blood! The other pools that he could see were also filled with blood. The forts and slides he could see were all red, and the grass and tiles in there were also turning red, and so was the fence! He did not need good eyesight to see that! He dashed across the fence, and when he finally reached the horse-place, he was horrified to see that the stable and barn next to it were all red, and so was the fence, and the grass there was also turning red! Gasping to catch his breath, he glanced around, and the red grass was coming towards him in nearly every direction! He sniffed the air, and all around him he could smell burning. He raced across the red fence and when he reached the end, he looked down towards the main entrance into the woods, and spotted the humans there talking and walking into the woods.

Hector decided to follow the humans to see what they were up to. Hector stepped onto the soil path, and took a few more steps closer, watching the humans walk away. Hector watched them as he took several moments to catch his breath. He finally turned around to look back at the farm, and his mouth gaped open and he gasped in horror that the entire farm was now red! Everything he saw, the grass, the trees, the bushes, everything, was red! He felt a few warm raindrops touch him, and he looked up, and it began to rain lightly. However, it did not take long for Hector to realize in fright that the rain was blood, not water! His white fur became soaked with the blood falling from the sky. The warm breeze was getting hotter, and it was blowing into his face. The spreading red across the grass halted at the start of the path. It would not go any farther. It was as if the color red was chasing him, and then forcing him to go into the woods. This was very ominous, as he knew he was not supposed to enter the woods. He turned around, and saw that the humans had vanished.

Having nowhere else to go, Hector continued down the path. A minute later, he turned around, and gasped again, seeing that the farm had vanished! Now, it seemed as though he was in the middle of the woods! He looked around, and watched in fright how all of the trees and things around him were turning red. Although the ground was not turning red, it was turning black! He felt the ground get warmer. He smelled something, and turned towards the smell, and he noticed an eerie light coming from behind the trees. The black cloud in the sky was creating more and more thunder. The eerie light seemed to be getting closer and closer. All things around him was the color red! Now it was so red, he could barely make out the darker outlines of the objects! The eerie light making the red brighter was now showing something else. He could smell the trees burning, and realized in terror that there was a fire! He heard crackling behind him, and whipped around to see in more terror that now there was fire coming from all directions, right towards him! He could smell the smoke arising from the fire, and began to cough.

Hector heard another noise, and saw the terrifying humans walking towards him. They appeared to actually see him! Frozen in complete terror, Hector could not move. He shook and coughed, and when the humans reached him, they stared at him with their two circle holes for eyes in their skulls. Their teeth were jagged, and they had a sinister grin, and began to laugh evilly as their skulls began to turn red. Hector cried in terror. They were wearing full black pelts, and they each took their dark brown sticks and pointed them at Hector. As the blood rain began to pour down heavily, staining his fur, and turning him red as well, the fire got much bigger, and before Hector knew it, it was within a very short distance from him. The humans' skulls suddenly grew much bigger, and the cloud roared lots of heavy thunder.

More terrified than he had ever been in his life, he darted under one of the human's legs, and quickly climbed up a nearby pile of boulders in the middle of the setting. As he climbed, he turned around and saw the humans' bodies disappearing, and turning into more fire, leaving only the evil skulls getting bigger and laughing and floating in the air. Hector felt that his paws were getting hotter. The fire was within a few feet from him now! He climbed to the very top of the boulders, and looking around, he was trapped! The red flames were slowly climbing up the boulders after him! He cried out for help at the top of his lungs, choking on the surrounding smoke. The blood rain poured harder and harder until the ground of the forest quickly turned into a lake of blood! Hector felt himself drowning in not only the smoke, but also the heavy blood falling from the ominous cloud. Barely able to breathe, he screamed out for help as loud as he possibly could. All around him was red, red, red! The flood of blood carried the flames and made them get even closer to Hector. Hector could feel his whole body super hot, being stung by the small flakes of fire, about to burn. The skulls laughed harder, and the cloud appeared to be lowering down and nearly touched him! Hector continued to cry out for help in the raging red color.

Hector heard a loud voice echo across the forest. "Hector! Hector! Hector!", the voice shouted out. He closed his eyes. "Hector, wake up!", the voice impatiently demanded. Hector felt the burning sensation fade away, and now it was all black and silent.

After a few moments, he opened his eyes, and felt wood beneath his paws. His vision was briefly blurry as he saw a familiar black face looking down at him. "Wake up!", it exclaimed.

Hector blinked several times until his vision cleared up a little. He saw that it was Bear. He looked around, and realized that he was laying down on top of the fence in front of the dirt-place. It was very early in the morning, the scent of dew tickling his nose, the sun just beginning to rise. "Bear?", Hector asked.

"You creep me out so much, Runt!", Bear stated.

"What?", Hector asked, confused.

"Never seen you do that!", Bear added.

"Do what?", Hector asked, still confused.

Hector noticed that the three other cats were also on the fence.

"What happened?", Hector asked again, demanding to know.

"You were sleep-walking, you know that?", Bear stated.

"Sleep-walking?", Hector asked.

"Yes, sleep-walking," Bear continued. "Me, Misty, Bandit, and Bella were having a discussion up here on the fence after eating our breakfast, and you came out here walking up to us creepily, climbed up the fence, and started touching me like a maniac!"

"What?", Hector asked, astonished.

"It took me a minute to realize you weren't awake," Bear added. "I knew we needed to wake you up."

"Wake me up?", Hector responded. " _Was that just a bad dream, or not_?", he asked himself. What he just went through seemed so realistic to him. He knew he fell asleep in his nest, and somehow he sleep-walked and ended up on the fence outside.

"Come on, guys," Bear commanded the other three cats. "Let's go."

The four cats jumped down from the fence and trotted away, passing the garden. Hector jumped down, yawned, and, knowing how early it was, decided to head back to his nest and go back to sleep. The other dogs in the barn were all asleep still, and Hector fell back asleep quickly. He was dreaming again, but this time, he was just surrounded by the blood red farm, and was feeling rather hot again.

He woke up again, almost jumping up in fright. When he realized he was really awake again, he calmed down. However, terror poked his entire body like a thousand needles. " _I never ever want to see the color red again_!", Hector thought to himself. " _Never_!"

"Good morning, Hector!", Hector heard a voice greeting him. It was Chloe.

"Good morning, Chloe," Hector returned the greeting, but in a non-happy tone.

"What's wrong, Hector?", Chloe asked, half-amused. "Did you sleep okay?"

Hector did not really want to tell her about the nightmare he had. "Fine," he lied. "Just fine."

"The play-place is for the cut dogs today, so, I was going to hang out at the horse-place," Chloe said. "Join me?"

"Sure," Hector agreed, knowing he could no longer read those books.

"I just woke up, too, so I haven't eaten yet," Chloe stated. "Come on."

Chloe led the way into the house, and into the kitchen, where Rocky and Connor just finished their meal. Although he hated it, Hector took the medicine that is dropped like water into his eyes without a struggle. He reluctantly ate the puppy chow with Chloe. When one of the humans filled up a water bowl and gave it to Hector, Hector paused, and looked nervously at the water.

Chloe took notice. "What's wrong with the water, Hector?", she asked, amused. "Drink it."

Hector could not escape the fear that it was very hot. He first dabbed the water with his paw, and drank it after feeling it was cold. He sighed in relief.

"Why did you touch the water first?", Chloe asked.

"Let's just go to the horse-place," Hector shuddered.

"Uh, okay," Chloe agreed, confused.

When they both walked outside together, into the garden, Hector shivered uneasily as he looked back towards the barn and house, but they were not that solid red color. Through the garden, Chloe was sniffing the flowers and Hector was unaware, staring at the fence to see if it would turn red, when they got to the pond. He gasped in fright when he put one paw in the water. Chloe giggled and hopped happily into the water, splashing Hector completely.

In response, Hector yelped in fright. Chloe spun around, taking notice. Hector, still yelling in fright, ran quickly away and raced out of the garden. When he was outside the gate on the other end of the garden, he panted, but relaxed when he saw no blood soaked into his fur.

"Hector!", Chloe chased after him, and stood beside him. "What was that all about? It's just water. Did you not want to get wet? I didn't mean to get you wet."

"No," Hector replied, embarrassed, "It wasn't that."

"Then what was it?", Chloe asked.

"Nothing," Hector lied, and continued on padding away towards the horse-place, without waiting for a reply. Chloe shrugged her shoulders and followed him.

Hector and Chloe passed by the rescued dogs' place, and watched the cut dogs happily run towards the play-place following the human workers. Close to the rescued dogs' place was where several monsters slept on a black stinky ground.

Chloe began walking across the black. As soon as Hector placed one paw on the black, he yelped in fright and pain and jumped up in the air, landing back on the grass. He shook that paw frantically. "It burns, it burns!", he exclaimed.

In response, Chloe spun around and gave Hector a shocked expression. "Hector, what happened?", she asked. "What burns?"

"My paw!", Hector complained. "It...", he broke off. His paw was not burning at all. He stopped shaking it.

"Your paw is burning?", Chloe asked, much more confused than concerned.

"No," Hector responded, embarrassed again. "The black...just felt...kinda...warm," he stammered.

"Well, of course it's gonna be a little hot," Chloe responded, slightly dumbfounded. "It always is, and you have crossed it before."

"Yeah, I know," Hector responded, still embarrassed.

Chloe continued across the black stinky ground, and Hector followed. The heat beneath him made him uncomfortable.

Hector kept his eyes focused on the ground, wanting to watch where he was stepping. When they had reached the white fence, Hector froze in horror and yelled in complete terror when he saw the huge barn next to the horse stable, jumping in the air again.

"HECTOR!", Chloe yelled, in a concerned tone, but with an impatient expression. "What is the matter with you?"

At the same time, a pair of grazing cows close by lifted their heads up, twitched their ears, and looked towards Hector, taking notice.

Hector breathed heavily in and out.

"The, the, the...the barn...is...is...is RED!", Hector shivered and fretted. "RED, RED, RED!"

"Yes, the barn is mostly red in color," Chloe responded, completely dumbfounded. "With white, black, and brown."

"RED!", Hector exclaimed again.

"What is going on here?", a voice approached them. It was Rainstorm walking up to them on the other side of the fence. "Who is screaming?"

"RUNT, HAH!", another voice came up. It was Buster, in full amusement. "I thought I recognized that scream!" He was with Owen and Gavin, and four other older pups. They all laughed.

Hector turned his emotion into embarrassment again. He sighed.

"What was with that outburst, Hector?", Rainstorm asked. "What happened?"

"Nothing," Hector lied again. "Nothing. No reason."

"You have been acting so weird this morning," Chloe stated to Hector. "You seem to be scared to death of something random at any sudden time. Why?"

"He ALWAYS acts weird," Gavin snorted. "It's no different right now."

"Him and his 'marking language'," one of the older pups teased.

"Which he can't do now!", Buster taunted.

The bullies laughed.

"I KNEW you were responsible for that incident, Buster," Chloe remarked.

"What incident, doll-face?", Buster snorted in response.

"Don't play dumb with me," Chloe stated assertively.

"Who cares?", one of the older pups responded. "Now he has to spend more time outside where he'd get more actual sunlight to grow," he teased.

The bullies laughed harder at that.

"Hector, what were you so afraid of?", Rainstorm tried to end the unnecessary argument.

"Nothing," Hector repeated.

"Hector," Chloe said in a slightly scolding tone. "You're lying."

"I said NOTHING is scaring me, okay?", Hector responded.

"SOMETHING clearly is Hector," Chloe added. "There's no hiding that."

"Tell us what's wrong, Hector," Rainstorm prompted. "What makes you so fearful of things today?"

"He's obviously scared of what we'll do next," Buster suggested.

"We'll be accomplices next time," an older pup added.

"You better watch out Runt," another older pup added. "You have no idea."

"Yeah, I bet that IS what he's afraid of," Owen agreed with Buster.

"THAT'S what you're afraid of?", Rainstorm asked Hector.

"No," Hector answered. "I mean, yes, no, yes, I don't know," he stammered, not sure whether he should say yes or no. That would work as an excuse to not have to tell them about the nightmare, which is what he really could not get out of his mind. It was too real. "No," he decided.

"A vulnerable runt like you should be afraid of EVERYTHING," an older pup teased.

The bullies laughed, and ran away towards the play-place.

"I noticed the terror in your eyes, Hector," Chloe remarked. "I know it wasn't Buster and his pals you were frightened of. Yesterday, but, not today."

"I am NOT scared of them right now," Hector agreed. "I am just furious at what they did to my books."

"Then what is wrong?", Chloe prompted.

"Can't we play a game or something?", Hector asked. "I'm bored."

"Not until you tell us...", Chloe responded.

"I don't wanna talk about it, okay?", Hector finally said. "Let's just play something," he added.

They were interrupted by a few humans walking by with pales of oats and barley. "Oh, breakfast!", Rainstorm remarked.

Rainstorm happily followed them, and Chloe and Hector followed as well.

Inside the horse stable, the horses were in their stalls ready to eat. As the two pups followed Rainstorm to next to his stall, they watched Rainstorm enter it, waiting for his oats and barley. "The humans are kinda late giving us breakfast today," Rainstorm commented.

Rainstorm chowed down his food after a human poured it into his food holder.

"How does it taste?", Hector asked, curious.

"Better than grazing on grass," Rainstorm answered.

"Would I like it?", Hector asked.

"I don't think so," Starlight answered in another stall. "This is not meant for dogs to eat."

"Canines are mostly carnivorous animals," Champ added in another stall. "We equines are herbivorous."

"So?", Hector responded. "Puppy chow is meant for puppies, and I don't like IT much."

The horses chuckled in response. Chloe also chuckled.

"What's so funny?", Hector asked.

"You have your cute quotes, pup," Rainstorm answered.

"Hey," Chloe decided. "We should go for a ride tonight, Hector!"

"That'd be fun," Starlight agreed.

"Tonight?", Hector asked.

"Yeah," Chloe added. "Don't you remember? The humans should not see us doing something they'll think is bizarre."

"Just as all us animals shouldn't talk in front of them," Champ remarked.

"You know what?", Hector asked. "There should be times where we would NEED to speak to them."

"We SHOULDN'T though," Rainstorm responded.

"Parrots have it different though, don't they?", Hector asked.

"There is a difference between having the ability to mimic and the ability to speak at a different frequency," Champ stated.

"That sounds like what Hugo and Nick were talking about before," Hector remarked.

"Didn't you say you wanted to play something?", Chloe asked Hector, changing the subject.

"Yeah, I guess," Hector agreed. "I can't read those books anymore."

"Then what should we play?", Chloe asked.

"How about hide-and-seek?", Hector suggested.

"Hmm...," Chloe responded. "It's not really much fun unless you have more players than two."

"True," Hector agreed. "We'll have to find others who will play."

"I'm sure Olivia and Sadie will play," Chloe suggested. "I wonder where they are."

"Maybe they're still having their beauty sleep," Hector joked.

"I think I saw Olivia and Sadie near the chicken coop," Rainstorm informed.

"What were they doing there?", Chloe asked. "They don't bother the chickens."

"They were with Cocoa, until he went to do something else with somebody else," Rainstorm added.

"Well, let's go ask them!", Chloe prompted, and dashed across the horse stable. Hector followed.

They reached the chicken coop in the horse-place, and saw Olivia and Sadie talking to Zoey and Ginger.

"What's up?", Chloe greeted them.

"Not much," Olivia responded.

"We were just discussing what we think their pups will be like," Sadie added, leaning towards Zoey and Ginger.

"We were looking for some more players for hide-and-seek," Chloe remarked.

"Sure," Sadie agreed.

"We'd love too," Olivia agreed.

"We'll play too," Zoey invited.

"Really?", Chloe asked, amused.

"Yeah," Ginger added. "We got nothing better to do."

"Is, Hector, playing with us?", Sadie asked blankly.

"Yes," Chloe answered slowly.

"How about you count then, Hector," Olivia suggested, with amusement in her eyes.

"From 200," Sadie added.

"Uh, okay," Hector agreed, confused at their tones.

"When you find us, we'll head back here," Chloe added in a more friendly voice.

Hector laid down and covered his eyes with his paws, and began to count down from 200.

The 5 hiders split up and raced across the horse-place, some going into the barn and stable.

"Ready or not, here I come!", Hector called out when he reached 0. This game was pretty easy for him. Although his eyesight was not very great, his sense of smell worked much better, and was in fact more useful than sight.

Hector began to sniff to see which direction he should go first. He decided to enter the barn first.

Inside the barn was a pen for pigs, stalls for cows, and there was a second level above that held lots of extra straw and hay. Hector could smell Sadie's scent on the steps leading up there. He climbed up there, and began to sniff down on the messy floor, and hopped on top and over the blocks of hay. The next set of blocks he smelled Sadie hiding in the middle, as these blocks were not a perfect shape.

"Come out, Sadie!", Hector called. "I found you!"

Sadie poked her head out of the hole in the middle block, and seeing Hector, climbed out.

"I'm the first one you found, aren't I?", Sadie asked blankly.

"Yes, you are," Hector answered proudly.

"Great," Sadie responded sarcastically. She shook scraps of hay off her pelt.

"One down, four to go," Hector stated. He went back down the steps and continued looking through the barn.

Hector peered inside the pig pen, where the pigs were sleeping, their ears twitching. Hector could smell one of the players in there. One of the spotted pigs was drinking out of their water bowl. Hector climbed over into the pen, and looked around, examining the sleeping pigs.

"What are you looking for?", the spotted pig asked.

"Another dog," Hector answered.

"Hide-and-seek?", the pig asked.

"Yeah," Hector answered.

Hector sniffed towards the food holder, and could smell Olivia. "Okay, Olivia, I know you're under there," he stated.

"Well done," Olivia responded sarcastically, climbing out from underneath the food holder. She shook clumps of dirt off her pelt.

The pig chuckled. "I can see you are using your nose, young pup," he commented.

"Sure makes the game easier," Hector responded.

"How many more players do you have to find?", the pig asked.

"Three," Hector answered.

"I bet there's someone hiding...", the pig chuckled.

"Well, don't help him!", Olivia broke the pig off. "He has to find all of us on his own. Otherwise he's cheating."

"Sorry," the pig responded. "I don't play hide-and-seek."

Hector leaped out of the pig pen, and looked down the barn. He continued through it, sniffing out each cow stall. He heard another voice from one of the stalls.

"Hey," the voice asked. "What-cha looking for?"

Hector turned to see who it was. It was a goat coming out of one of the stalls.

"Looks like your tracking something, little hound," the goat commented. "What do you seek?"

"I'm playing hide-and-seek," Hector responded, and continued searching. The goat followed him.

"You like using your nose to find stuff?", the goat asked.

"I have blurry eyesight," Hector replied.

"I'd bet you'd make a great rabbit tracker one day," the goat commented.

"Sure," Hector responded blankly.

Hector paused when he smelled Ginger's fresh scent. "I smell Ginger," he reported.

Hector walked to the end of the last stall, and beside it in the back of the barn. There was a large gray wheelbarrow leaning horizontal against the wall. Hector got closer, and knew she was there. "Come out, Ginger," Hector prompted.

"I thought this was a pretty good hiding place," Ginger responded, knocking the wheelbarrow over to get out. "But I just can't fit in here well with a belly full of puppies," she added with amusement.

"Perhaps you should've picked a more comfortable spot," the goat suggested.

"Who do you got left to find?", Ginger asked Hector.

"Just Zoey and Chloe," Hector reported.

"Where are you gonna look now?", the goat asked.

"The horse stable," Hector answered. He raced to the connected portion of the building to the horse stable. He sniffed out the horse stalls quickly.

The horses took notice. "Decided to play hide-and-seek, huh?", Starlight asked.

"Yeah," Hector replied. "Now I just have to find two more."

"Well, good luck," Starlight remarked.

Hector sniffed out the stalls closest to Starlight's. Then he paused, perked his ears, and sniffed towards Starlight's stall. "Wait a second," he chuckled.

"What?", Starlight asked.

"Zoey, I know you're in there," Hector called out. "Show yourself."

Zoey appeared on Starlight's neck. "You found me," Zoey chuckled.

"Starlight," Hector giggled. "You helped her, didn't you?"

"I just didn't help you," Starlight stated with amusement.

"I've only got Chloe to find now, so she is the winner," Hector stated.

"Well then, let's just find her together, then," Zoey suggested. She climbed off Starlight onto her food holder, and hopped off the open part of the stall wall.

The two dogs began calling out to Chloe. The horses did too.

"What's all this calling out about?", a voice interrupted them. It was Daisy padding over to Hector and Zoey. "You doing some kind of activity with Hector, Zoey?", she asked with amusement.

"Ginger and I were playing hide-and-seek," Zoey answered. "And now Hector realized that Chloe won."

"Were you looking for us, Daisy?", Hector asked.

"Actually, I was looking for you, Hector," Daisy answered.

"Why?", Hector asked, confused.

"Bear told me that you were sleep-walking very early this morning," Daisy informed with concern.

"Yeah, I...I did," Hector responded.

"You were sleep-walking?", Zoey asked.

"Does that have something to do with you acting so jumpy today?", Rainstorm asked.

Hector sighed.

"Is there something we need to talk about, Hector?", Daisy asked.

"Let's go find Chloe," Hector prompted.

"Chloe's near the gate on the white fence outside," Daisy informed. "I didn't go up to her. I just spotted her."

"Then let's go," Hector prompted again, and raced to the stable door. Zoey and Daisy followed.

They called out to Chloe, and she followed them to the chicken coop. When they reached the chicken coop, Connor was there yapping at the hens.

"Connor," Daisy prompted.

Connor whipped around.

"So, Hector," Daisy asked, "What did Rainstorm mean when he said you were jumpy?"

"Uh...", Hector responded nervously.

"Buster told me that he heard Hector screaming," Connor stated in a teasing voice.

"It was crazy, Daisy," Chloe explained. "Today, Hector jumped and yelped at random things out of nowhere."

"Is that true?", Daisy asked Hector in a calm worried voice. "Was something scaring you today?"

"Nothing in particular...", Hector tried to hold back mentioning the nightmare.

"What do you mean?", Daisy asked.

"Well, it's, it's..." Hector continued, "...kinda a long story."

"Was it another incredibly scary nightmare?", Connor asked in a teasing voice.

Hector's eyes widened. He remembered how he told Connor, Sadie, Olivia, and Chloe about that previous nightmare.

"You had another nightmare?", Daisy asked Hector with concern. "That would explain why you were sleep-walking and acting so scared."

Hector sighed. "Yes," he admitted. "I had a nightmare last night."

"What was it about?", Olivia asked. "Was it a metaphor?"

"I just can't stand looking at the color red!", Hector exclaimed. "That's all I'm gonna say!"

"But why?", Chloe prompted.

"I can't get the dream out of my mind!", Hector responded.

"What was scary about it?", Chloe prompted.

"It was just a bad dream that's long over with and doesn't matter now!", Hector yelled impatiently. "Stop interrogating me!"

Hector ran off without waiting for a response. He stared at the ground to watch his step. He hadn't gone far when he heard another voice.

"Where do you think you're going?", the dog said. Hector ran into that dog. He looked up and it was Maximus.

"Hi, Max," Hector quietly said in a nervous tone.

The other dogs caught up to Hector.

"You've got some explaining to do," Maximus stated to Hector.

"We need answers right now," Daisy demanded Hector.

"Where's...where's...", Hector asked, "Sebastian?"

"Sebastian?", Maximus asked. "Why?"

"What does he have to do with this?", Daisy asked.

"Cuz if I say anything, I can only tell him," Hector answered. "Can't we just talk about this later when Sebastian is with us?"

"Where is Sebastian?", Daisy asked Maximus.

"He's where he usually is," Maximus answered, "With Charlotte on top of the dog barn."

"Well, let's go to him, then," Hector prompted.

Maximus rolled his eyes. "Alright, Hector," he sighed. "But we are to have answers then, got it?"

Hector nodded slowly with a worried expression.

Daisy turned to the other dogs. "You guys don't have to come with us," she informed.

"Okay, we'll just go get a snack," Ginger suggested. She summoned Zoey with her tail and they padded off together.

"I'm gonna go watch the rescued dogs at the play-place," Sadie suggested and padded off as well.

"I don't know why," Olivia stated, "But I feel almost interested in knowing."

"Me too," Connor added. "Something tells me it could be fun to listen to."

"As long as you two aren't meaning to make fun of your brother in any way," Daisy ordered.

Connor and Olivia looked at each other. "No," they both said at the same time in an amused tone.

"Okay then," Maximus nodded. "Chloe?", he asked.

"I'll come too," Chloe invited.

Maximus led the way back to the dog barn. Hector muttered a thank you to Chloe, as he knew he should tell his best friend.

When they finally reached the top of the dog barn, they found Sebastian and Charlotte. The two elderly dogs lifted their heads up.

"Greetings, leaders," they both greeted Maximus and Daisy, dipping their heads respectfully.

"Hello, Sebastian, Charlotte," Maximus and Daisy returned the greeting.

"Hector needs to tell us something," Maximus explained. "However, he refuses to tell us unless he tells you, too."

"Just last night," Sebastian recalled, "Hector told us a story."

"What story?", Maximus asked.

Hector's eyes widened.

"He told us an ancestor appeared to him and gave him a prophecy of his own," Sebastian informed.

Maximus, Daisy, Chloe, Connor, and Olivia all widened their eyes in complete shock.

Maximus turned to look at Hector. "Our ancestors sent you a prophecy?", Maximus quietly asked, amazed.

Hector nodded slowly.

"Why didn't you tell me?", Maximus asked.

"I didn't want to," Hector admitted. "I wasn't sure how you'd react."

"Why?" Maximus asked.

Hector hesitated and sighed. "I had another nightmare last night," Hector told his grandparents. "The worst one yet. The most horrifying one."

All of the dogs sat in a circle for Hector to tell them about it.

Hector began. "I thought I just woke up in my nest, but, it turned out to be something different. I went to go get a drink in the water bowl, but the water turned red and scalding. Before I knew it, the entire barn turned red and scalding, and for some reason, none of you were aware. Only I felt the burning sensation."

The dogs' eyes were all again widened with shock, and full of interest. Hector continued. "I went outside, and saw these horrifying looking creatures that resembled humans with skulls for heads and giant sticks. I spotted the cats and went to ask them what was going on, but when I tried to talk to them, they wouldn't respond. I went to touch Bear, but somehow, he couldn't see me. None of them knew I was there."

"Bear told me you were approaching and touching him in your sleep-walking," Daisy recalled.

Hector nodded, and continued. "I went to search for those creatures, but before I knew it, the scalding red quickly chased me into the woods, covering the entire farm. In the woods, I got trapped in a wildfire, with nowhere to run. I could feel the burning hot, I choked on the smoke, and it was raining blood! Even the pools in the pool-area were filled with blood!"

The dogs looked at each other with shock and uncertainty.

"Now, I can't stand to look at the color red," Hector stated. "It just terrifies me to death to think that that bad dream will come true!"

"That might have been an omen, too, Hector," Sebastian suggested, with regret in his eyes.

"An omen?", Daisy asked.

"You mean you believe Hector has been sent omens?", Maximus asked.

"That dream could become reality?", Hector asked with fright.

"Yes, Maximus," Sebastian answered. "Hector," he said to Hector, "I did not say it was real."

"What exactly is a prophecy?", Olivia asked.

"It means Hector has been sent a destiny by our ancestors," Maximus answered. "Only a few lucky dogs will receive one...including me."

"You had a prophecy, Max?", Connor asked.

"Yes," Maximus replied. He turned back to Hector. "Hector, what was your prophecy?"

Hector spoke the same words again. "An enduring brilliant white light sent by the stars will accompany a divergent red light as they both glimmer through the power of time."

Maximus nodded slowly with a nervous expression.

"I have no idea what it means," Hector explained. "But now I really wonder what the 'red' in it means."

"You won't know until it's fulfilled, Hector," Maximus explained.

"That's what I keep hearing," Hector remarked.

"Well, maybe the ancestors really are warning of an actual wildfire," Maximus remarked. "Or bad humans, coming our way."

"Well, then, maybe we should investigate into it," Daisy suggested. "Perhaps we should search the woods for any sort of clues for a significant bad event."

"Yes," Maximus agreed, "Take the precautions. I'll inform Deputy about this right away."

"Can we help?", Olivia asked.

"How about you, Chloe, Connor, and Hector, all of you go tell the horses that we need to go investigate the woods," Maximus suggested.

"Today?", Connor asked.

"Yes, today," Maximus prompted. "If this is possibly an omen, we must act immediately. We will go alert the humans."

"Come on, let's go then," Olivia prompted, and dashed off across the garden and down the steps, Connor and Chloe following close behind.

Hector stayed behind. "Max?", he asked quietly.

"Yes, son?", Maximus responded.

"The reason I wouldn't tell you about my encounter with an ancestor...", Hector hesitated. He went silent for a moment.

"Why?", Maximus prompted.

"I think...", Hector slowly hesitated. "I think I met that dog in the meadow you told me about..."

Maximus and Daisy slowly looked at each other in worried shocked expressions. Hector ran off to catch up with Chloe, Olivia, and Connor, leaving his parents with stunned silence. Hector thought it would be hard to tell his parents that, but, he already told his grandparents about that, and they probably would have told them anyways, probably right then in fact. Trying to put his thoughts aside, he went with his siblings to tell the horses about the needed hike into the woods.

That evening, after the humans have went to sleep, Hector and Chloe entered into the horse stable. Connor and Olivia joined as well, all eager to know what happened in the investigation.

"Champ!", Hector called out.

"Starlight!", Chloe added.

"Rainstorm!", Hector added.

The three horses blinked their eyes open and twitched their ears. The investigation did not last all day. The horses took a rest when they came back.

"Come on," Chloe prompted playfully. "Get up!"

"You pups are all wide awake aren't you?", Champ asked.

Connor and Olivia unlocked the stall doors. It wasn't ridiculously difficult to do. The horses walked out of their stalls, and they followed the pups heading out the stable door. The other horses were snoozing. They entered the course with the horse hurdles and the pups sat on top of the white fence in front of the horses. Misty happened to be sitting there too. Two cows were grazing near the fence on the other side.

"Just out for a stroll, I presume?", Misty asked.

"Yeah," Chloe answered. "Just hanging out and staying up late."

Misty took a glance at each animal. "None of you look too tired, tonight," she commented.

"You certainly don't look tired," Olivia responded to Misty.

"We cats are mostly nocturnal," Misty stated.

"What are you doing here?", Hector asked.

"Hunting for mice," Misty responded. "The humans appreciate us cats keeping the farm rodent-free."

"Why are you guys out here?", Connor asked the nearby cows. "Aren't you guys usually sleeping right now?"

"We spent most of the day in slumber," one of the cows answered. "The humans were a little too busy today to tend to us much."

"We can't sleep on three empty stomachs," the other cow chuckled in addition.

"So, how did it go?", Hector asked the horses.

"How did what go?", Misty asked.

"Max and Daisy took a group into the woods searching for suspicious anomalies," Connor answered.

"Hmm," Misty responded. "I was wondering what the little commotion was about."

"We didn't really find much," Rainstorm explained. "I didn't think we would."

"However, we do intend on looking tomorrow, too," Champ added.

"Well, that's disappointing," Connor responded.

"What are the odds something will come up tomorrow?", Olivia asked.

"Anyone's guess," Starlight chuckled. "For all we know, this could be a false alarm."

"But aren't Max and Daisy scared?", Hector protested. "Wouldn't they be to the point where they would keep looking every single day until they find out the truth?"

"But what if there is no truth?", Rainstorm asked.

"No one can say your dreams meant anything, Hector," Champ explained.

Hector sighed.

"I don't really know what you guys are talking about," Misty remarked, "But I reckon I'll figure it out on my own."

"If a significant event does occur, you will know," Rainstorm responded to Misty. "It could affect all of us."

Misty rolled her eyes. "Whatever you wanna believe," she responded blankly.

"I just for some strange reason feel really interested in this stuff," Olivia remarked.

"Me too," Connor agreed. "Even though it's probably all just a load of dung."

"A little too strong use of words, Connor," Rainstorm responded.

"Well, it probably is," Connor protested.

"Max and Daisy wouldn't tell you guys anything, would they?", Starlight asked the pups, amused.

"Of course not," Connor answered tartly. "Pretty flea-brained if you ask me."

"Well, are we gonna argue over something flea-brained or are we gonna ride?", Chloe remarked excitedly.

"Hop on, pups," Starlight invited. The three horses pointed their backs to the pups. Connor hopped on Champ, Olivia on Rainstorm, and Chloe and Hector on Starlight.

The pups happily spent a while riding the horses through the course, especially at jumping the hurdles. Champ was the most skilled of the three.

The cows and Misty watched them for a few minutes with amusement. "There is so much that will entertain the average pup," Misty commented.

"Yeah," a cow agreed. "You give them a ball, and that's all they need to keep them occupied."

"But you know what the funny thing is?", Misty asked the cows.

"What?", a cow asked.

"That little white wonder is quite different," Misty answered.

"We've heard rumors that he wants to be a...", a cow recalled, "...a...human...sort of...even though he's a dog."

"Who told you guys about that," Misty asked, "Just out of curiosity?"

"That pup, Buster," a cow answered.

"That doesn't surprise me," Misty chuckled. "But I can say that was a terrible thing Buster did to Hector."

"You mean the destruction Buster caused in the house?", a cow asked.

"Yeah," Misty answered. "But, right now, it looks as though Hector is trying to cope with it already. By accident or intentionally, I'm not sure."

Misty left, back into the horse stable. When the horses finally felt worn out from the jumping, they stopped and the pups locked them back into their stalls so the humans would take no notice. All four of the pups, including Hector, felt pretty tired then. They headed back to the dog barn to go to sleep for the night.

On the way, Hector nervously thought back to that nightmare. He was so sick of having them. He believed that the only way for the nightmares to stop would be to come face to face with whatever those potentially could be omens were trying to warn him of. Now, he could not tolerate being around the color red. He remembered how that ancestor he spoke to implied that a "pain and suffering" would come. Now he feels that the color "red" would be linked to that "pain and suffering", and maybe even his prophecy. " _Would a red-colored disaster really happen_?", he thought. " _Could the mysteries surrounding my dreams and prophecy come to reality through the color red_?" He tried to shake off his bad thoughts, hoping that he could sleep peacefully that night, and tomorrow, or the next day, the source of the potential disaster would be found and stopped before it could make it happen.


	18. A Destiny To Time-Travel

The night was rough for Hector, again. He had the nightmare again, his fur soaked in blood, his paws burning like they were on fire. Throughout the next day, he still felt fear when he saw the color red. There was no escaping from the horrifying images in his mind. He spent most of the day in the basement, studying the most advanced markings in the DVD videos, and playing tunes on the piano, due to what happened with the books. The humans were observing Hector all day in fascination. They seemed too proud and impressed to be angry about the book incident.

When Hector was settled into his nest that next night, Chloe laid down next to him.

"Hector?", she asked.

"Yeah?", Hector responded tiredly.

"I noticed today how the humans seemed quite interested in watching you do all that...stuff...today."

"Yeah," Hector yawned.

"Do you ever wonder what the humans really think of you?"

"It baffles their minds, I'm sure."

"I mean, do you really believe that they are certain it was you who destroyed those books?"

"Other dogs wouldn't touch them," Hector lowered his head onto his paws.

"I know, but...", Chloe hesitated. "Don't you think there could be a way to..." she paused and went silent for a few moments.

"A way to what?", Hector prompted.

"Never mind," Chloe sighed.

Hector shrugged his shoulders and went to sleep, preparing himself for the horrors and pain that he expected to come.

Hector felt a cool breeze ruffle his fur. It was not the same sweltering heat he felt in his nightmares. He opened his eyes, and saw that he was still in his nest. The barn, however, was completely empty. The other dogs were not there. He got up, not seeing a particular bright red spreading anywhere. Not daring to take a drink from the water bowl, he went right outside. When he was outside, he saw that, to his relief, the farm appeared to be quite calm, and there were beautiful stars in the night sky and crickets chirping. Wondering where the other dogs were, he smelled the air, and headed towards the horse-place. When he was there, to his amazement, he could see all the other animals on the farm crowded and gathering around the little hill in the horse paddock. He knew this was where the leaders addressed their pack, but someone else appeared to be on the hill calling a meeting. It was a dark brown male dog with a white belly and chest.

Hector gasped and gaped. To his shock, the male dog on top of the hill was no ordinary-looking dog! He had a very bright bluish tint all over him that glowed like the stars! Hector could not believe his eyes!

Hector joined the other dogs but when he came closer, he could not see or smell his siblings anywhere. And the dogs around him did not seem to notice him walking right next to them. He remembered the dream where the cats could not notice him. " _Am I sleepwalking again_?", Hector wondered. Keeping his paws to himself, he found a spot to sit in front of the crowd.

Hector noticed two other dogs joining the starry dog on top of the hill. Hector realized it was Maximus and Daisy. However, they looked younger.

The starry dog began to speak. To add to Hector's shock, the starry dog's voice sounded as if it was in echoes.

"The great ancestors have spoken, and they agree on who are destined to be the new leaders," the starry dog began to announce.

" _NEW leaders_?", Hector thought in confusion.

"They approve of our decision on this great noble position," the starry dog continued. "It is time for two new leaders to defend and protect us. Ancestors, hear our voice!"

"Ancestors, hear our voice!", all the other animals repeated the starry dog's words together, bowing their heads respectfully.

"A new journey shall be walked upon," the starry dog continued. "Ancestors, light our path!"

"Ancestors, light our path!", the other animals repeated again.

A few moments of silence went by, and a big breeze swept across the area, carrying leaves and other small debris, blowing into the animals' fur. All the animals kept their heads bowed in respect.

When the starry dog spoke again, the animals lifted their heads back up, and Hector's eyes widened and he gasped again as he saw other starry dogs manifesting themselves to appearance from the leaves and debris, emanating more of the beautiful blue light. " _Are the starry dogs ancestors_?", Hector wondered in fascination.

The speaking starry dog continued, turning to Maximus and Daisy, who bowed their heads respectfully to him. "Maximus, Daisy, do you promise to protect and defend your pack, to uphold the way of our ancestors, and to fulfill your destiny?", he asked.

"We hold the sacred promise," Maximus and Daisy answered together. They kept their heads bowed.

The speaking starry dog bowed his head in trust, and placed one of his front paws on Maximus's forehead, and the other on Daisy's forehead. After a moment, he pulled his paws slowly away, and left two sparkling paw-prints on their foreheads.

The speaking starry dog turned towards the other animals to announce to them again. "Animals of our hallowed home, we welcome your two new leaders: Maximus and Daisy!"

All of the starry dogs then howled, their echoing voices in harmony with each other. Hector turned around, and watched all of the other animals bowing to their two new leaders.

A minute went by. As the wind picked up again, Hector spun around, and saw the starry dogs turn into silhouettes, and slowly vanish into thin air, as their howls became softer and softer, and soon gone, as if the leaves and debris in the wind carried them away back into the sky. Hector looked up to the starry night sky, and a shooting star flew across it, emitting a giant light that made Hector's vision a complete white color. He shut his eyes, and laid down.

When he opened them, it was morning, and he apparently had woken up, and was in his nest. He was relieved he had not sleepwalked to the horse-place.

" _Did I just witness a sacred ceremony that actually happened a long time ago_?", Hector wondered in amazement. It would explain why his siblings were nowhere to be found. " _Did I just glimmer through the power of time_?", he remembered his prophecy. However, surely his prophecy could not have been to just have a vision from the past. There had to be more to it than just that. " _Time-travel_?", he wondered. " _Is this dream telling me that I am going to time-travel someday_?" But how was that even possible?

"Good morning, son," Hector heard Maximus greet him, and he looked towards him.

Hector yawned.

"Did you sleep okay this time?", Maximus asked. "Not another nightmare, I hope."

"Dad, this dream was stranger than the nightmares."

Maximus perked his ears. "How so?"

"Well...", Hector started, but hesitated, and sighed.

"How about we do something together, today," Maximus suggested with a smile. "You and me."

"You mean, like...", Hector said hopefully, "...taking a hike through the woods, together?" Hector chuckled nervously.

"Nice try," Maximus responded in an amused sarcastic tone. "The play-place is still closed for us, so..."

"What do you wanna do?"

"How about you tell me all about that dream of yours?"

"Okay, somewhere else though," Hector agreed, glancing around at the few other dogs playing tug-of-war and chatting with each other in the barn.

Maximus and Hector both took a drink from the water bowl, and walked up the steps into the garden on top of the barn. When they reached the other end of the rooftop garden, Deputy, Connor, and Olivia were sitting there, watching the view from the fence, and chatting.

Deputy turned to look towards them. "Hey, Hector, how did you sleep last night?"

Hector turned his head to Maximus. "I bet they would like to hear about your dream as well," Maximus suggested.

Maximus sat next to Deputy. Hector sat in front of them all to tell them about the dream. "I believe I witnessed a vision from the past," Hector began slowly.

"A vision?", Maximus asked.

"What did you see?", Deputy added.

"It was a ceremony," Hector continued. "And the dogs holding it had starry sparkling blue pelts and spoke with echoing voices."

Connor and Olivia's eyes widened. Deputy and Maximus exchanged a nervous glance at each other.

"Who were they?", Hector asked.

Deputy answered after a few silent moments. "They're spirits, Hector."

"Spirits?", Olivia asked.

"They're the manifested souls of our ancestors," Maximus explained.

"When they appear to us in our world," Deputy added.

"You mean they're deceased?", Connor asked, in an almost sarcastic tone.

Maximus gave Connor a confused look. "Yes."

"If they're dead, how could other animals see them?", Hector asked.

"Humans are not able to see spirits, Hector," Deputy explained.

"Really?" Hector asked.

"But we animals have the sense that allows us to detect many things that humans cannot," Maximus added.

"We can detect thunderstorms, earthquakes, the magnetic field," Deputy elaborated. "We can smell fear and other emotions."

"Humans cannot do those types of things," Maximus stated. "But when spirits want to appear to us, we are easily able to sense them."

"Well," Hector continued. "The ceremony was you, Max, and Daisy, becoming the new leaders."

Maximus and Deputy exchanged another glance at each other. "That was a very long time ago," Maximus commented.

"It made me think of my prophecy, where it said 'I would glimmer through the power of time'," Hector recalled. "A coincidence, right?"

"It could be another sign, still," Maximus suggested. "Every one of your dreams seems to have a deeper meaning behind it."

"Do you suppose there's a connection between this dream and the nightmares?", Deputy asked.

"I don't think so," Hector responded. "I hope not."

"I cannot understand how humans could be the only species without that sense," Connor commented.

"Is there anything humans can sense that we animals cannot?", Olivia asked.

"That's a mystery, Olivia," Maximus stated. "But what we know is that there are two kinds of animals in the world."

"Two kinds?" Hector asked.

"Yes," Deputy answered. "Two kinds of animals."

"What are they?", Hector asked.

"There are animals, like us, that are driven by will," Maximus explained.

"But there are others, unlike us," Deputy added, "That are driven by instinct."

"Will and instinct," Connor repeated.

"Yes, son," Maximus responded.

"What's the difference?", Hector asked.

"Most animals are driven by instinct," Maximus explained. "We, however, are driven by will."

"All the animals here on the farm are will animals?", Olivia asked.

"Yes," Deputy nodded. "Virtually all domesticated animals, ones that live among humans, are will animals."

"That means not all dogs are will animals," Maximus explained.

"There are dogs that don't live with humans?", Hector asked.

"There are plenty of dogs that don't live with humans of their own, Hector," Deputy answered. "But the ones that still live among them are still often will dogs."

"The dogs in the world that are instinct dogs were born in the wild, and never interacted with humans," Maximus added.

"Really?", Connor asked.

"Instinct dogs do not talk. They do not make choices. They only react to what their natural instincts tell them to do."

"They can be quite dangerous," Deputy commented.

"Wait a second," Hector responded. "The cats here on the farm were born wild, though, right? They're feral."

"They are feral," Maximus responded. "But they have always lived among humans."

"They are will animals. They talk and choose right and wrong," Deputy added.

"However," Maximus added. "Will animals can sometimes revert to their natural instincts."

"How?," Hector asked. "Why?"

"Well," Deputy answered, "If we adult dogs saw our pups in danger, we would respond assertively or aggressively to save them."

"That's not unlike how Daisy and I reacted when we learned that you and Chloe were missing, somewhere in the woods," Maximus added.

"What if humans were beating the dung out of me in front of you?", Connor asked Maximus in amusement.

"Okay, one, I would probably be driven to bite those humans," Maximus responded. "And, two, do not use that type of language," he added in a scolding tone.

"Bite?", Olivia asked.

"Is that one thing that instinct dogs would do?", Hector asked.

"Yes, very likely," Deputy answered.

"Don't get any ideas, Hector," Maximus kept the scolding tone. "You are never ever to bite humans, is that clear?"

Hector nodded nervously.

"The only reason for biting a human is if your instinct convinces you to do it," Maximus added. "If it is absolutely necessary."

"Just be careful," Deputy stated. "Sometimes, will animals can lose control of themselves and allow their natural instincts to get the better of them."

"It's all in evolution," Maximus added, calming his voice. "Deep down, we will animals still have natural instincts."

"You cannot become instinct dogs, pups," Deputy convinced. "You are will dogs, and you can control your actions."

"Wait," Olivia asked, "Can instinct animals see spirits? You said all animals can."

"All animals can, Olivia," Deputy answered.

"But instinct animals do not follow their ancestors like we will animals," Maximus added.

"Does that mean instinct animals don't go to that golden meadow you told me about?", Hector asked Maximus.

Connor and Olivia gave confused glances at each other. Deputy gave Maximus an uncertain expression.

"No will animal knows, Hector," Maximus slowly replied. "Instinct animals can't talk. We wouldn't know until we went there ourselves."

Hector tilted his head in wonder.

"I'm hungry," Deputy ended the conversation. "I'm gonna go snack."

"I need a drink," Olivia added.

"Me too," Connor agreed.

The three dogs got up and trotted out of the garden and down the steps into the barn. Maximus and Hector were still sitting where they were, watching them go.

Hector turned back to Maximus. "I think my dream is telling me that I will have the ability to travel to the past when I grow up," Hector stated.

Maximus chuckled. "Time-travel? Come on, Hector, that can't be possible."

"Well, then, how do you explain me witnessing that very event in YOUR lifetime, Dad?", Hector protested. "And my prophecy says I will have the power to travel through time."

Maximus sighed. "Anything can happen in dreams, Hector. Amazing experiences can be sent from your ancestors. But this is the physical world you are talking about traveling in."

"What are you saying?", Hector asked uneasily.

"All things mentioned in prophecies are almost always metaphorical," Maximus stated. "They're not often literal."

"Like what?"

"Well, if 'flood' was in the prophecy, it could mean a flood of emotion, awareness, or knowledge."

"Oh."

"But, you can believe whatever you want to believe, son," Maximus stated, and got up and walked over to the fence to observe the view below. "After all, you won't truly know what the message meant until you realize you have fulfilled it."

Hector sat in deep thought for a few moments. " _Would_ _I really become a time-traveler somehow when I grow up_?", he thought. " _Is that what my prophecy is? To time-travel? What would the rest of the message mean, then? Does this have something to do with the red nightmares I have been having, and the possible bad happening on its way? What am I destined to do in my life? Who am I destined to be? Who do the humans think I'm destined to be? The ancestors? The other dogs_?", he wondered.


	19. Strong Faith In The Ancestors

"So what should we do?", Maximus asked Hector, turning back to him, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Eat?"

Maximus led the way down the stairs, across the barn, and into the kitchen. Hector did not answer, but followed Maximus. The humans there were filling up the smaller bowls with puppy chow. Connor and Olivia were hopping through the front door's flap, meaning the humans were refilling the bowls. Deputy just finished his adult chow. The humans picked up the larger bowls to fill them up as well. As Deputy padded off, Ranger and Tracker entered, barking at the humans with their tails wagging. Rocky, Sadie, Audrey, and Layla were yipping with their tails wagging. When the humans placed the bowls carefully on the floor, Ranger and Tracker quickly began to chow down their food, and the pups began eating it slower.

Hector could smell strangely-scented human foods on the table. Maximus walked up to and barked at the master, who was one of the humans in there filling up the large bowls, also with his tail wagging. The master giggled and placed the next filled bowl on the floor, and said his name invitingly, briefly stroking Maximus's back.

A female human turned to Hector, and called him by his name, clicking her tongue. Hector just stood where he was, trying to show that he wasn't enthusiastic about the chow. After a few moments, she shook her head slowly with an expression of humor, chuckled, and carried the small bowl over to Hector, and placed it in front of him. She ruffled his head in that same demeaning voice and turned towards Ranger and Tracker who were quickly done and bent down and stroked their necks with each of her hands.

Hector rolled his eyes and bent down to eat the chow. Maximus finished his meal and when Hector was done, they both walked outside on the front porch.

"Let's walk over to the horse-place and see what's going on," Maximus suggested.

Hector nodded, and Maximus led the way.

"Chloe asked me something," Hector remarked.

"And what was that?", Maximus responded.

"She took notice of...well..."

"Of what?"

"The humans seem so fascinated with me when they see me...do...stuff..."

"Stuff."

"Playing with the piano...for example..."

"You amaze them, Hector. Other dogs don't do that stuff."

"I still can't accept why."

"It's not what we do, Hector. You are a complete will dog, and always will be."

"And that's a good thing."

Maximus sighed. "You let the humans influence you, son."

"You're saying that's a bad thing?"

"No. But, it does go against a canine's instincts."

"But you and Deputy do not want any of us to become dogs driven by instinct!"

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean? You're not making sense to me."

"Well, it just seems as though as you are growing older and older, you are forgetting what you are."

"And?"

"The ancestors are watching over you, a little differently than everyone else."

"Only they know my true destiny, don't they?"

"They can reveal or foretell such events in unexpected ways."

"Example?"

"Example?", Maximus chuckled. "Okay. Well, before Daisy became my mate, the mysterious anomaly guided me through a forest, another one, not the one here, to a field of daisies."

"Mysterious anomaly?"

"If you ever notice the breeze picking up debris and leaves, and blowing around all around you, it is believed that it's the spirits of the ancestors manifesting themselves."

"Oh." Hector remembered that in his dream.

"As if they were telling me that Daisy was destined to be my mate."

"Interesting."

"And that is also believed when you spot a shooting star flying across the night sky."

"I remember those things in my dream, Max. I am convinced that all these dreams I have had are foretelling my future."

"Dreams are like stars."

"Stars?"

"You cannot touch them. But if you follow them, they can lead you to your destiny."

Hector nodded.

The two dogs reached the play-place, and stopped and looked at the dogs playing inside.

"What is it with 'cut' dogs?", Hector asked, turning to Maximus.

"Huh?", Maximus responded, returning the look.

"Why are they called that?"

Maximus chuckled and shook his head. "You're too young. I'll tell you when you're older." He quickly padded away, not waiting for a response. Hector followed.

When they reached the front of the paddock, Ranger and Tracker were arguing angrily with Bear and Bandit. The cats were standing on top of the white fence, and the dogs were sitting below looking up at them.

"I assure you that I could do that course with my eyes closed!", Bear exclaimed.

"I could do it on two legs!", Bandit exclaimed.

"If you have such talent, then why won't you do it, then?", Ranger demanded.

"Not that we couldn't, it is just that we wouldn't!", Bandit stated.

"What are you arguing about this time?", Maximus asked, shaking his head in disapproval.

The arguing animals turned to look towards Maximus.

"Didn't I tell you to knock it off?", Maximus demanded in a firm voice.

"Sorry, Maximus," Tracker dipped his head respectfully to his leader.

Ranger did the same.

"If you are asking who started it, it was Ranger," Bear stated.

"Me, you are the one who criticized my balance!", Ranger protested.

"Bandit, you started it!", Tracker responded. "So what, I forgot a few sounds? Everyone forgets sometimes!"

"Cats do not like to start fights," Bandit remarked. "But we sure love to finish them!"

Hector was watching with a slightly entertained and slightly shocked expression.

"Enough, all of you!", Maximus responded firmly. "You are all arguing about who started arguing!"

"Don't even think about following us around, cats," Ranger warned.

"I just remembered we had squirrels to track down," Bear chuckled. He nodded to Bandit.

"And we don't FOLLOW them. We kill them," Bandit added in the same amused tone.

"Literally," Bear added in a blank tone.

Hector widened his eyes.

"Bandit? Bear?", Maximus scolded. "Enough."

Both cats humphed, rolled their eyes, dipped their heads, hopped off the fence, and padded away.

"Cats," Tracker and Ranger both said disapprovingly, shaking their heads. They turned back to Maximus.

"Did you want to talk to us again?", Ranger asked.

Maximus shook his head. "I wanted to know what was going on here."

"Well, Ranger and I were giving the rescued dogs more tips on the obstacle courses," Tracker answered.

"I mean what is everyone here at the horse-place up to?", Maximus asked.

"We were trying the horse hurdles," Ranger responded.

"Not that the humans would find that TOO weird," Tracker added, chuckling.

"What would the humans find weird then?", Hector asked. "Us riding the horses over the hurdles?"

"Only if they were not expecting it," Maximus answered. "If they taught us to do it, then..." He finished by shrugging his shoulders.

"The horses sure thought it was funny," Ranger commented.

"The humans were laughing harder, though," Tracker added.

"We even did a little race, Champ and I, and his rider," Ranger added, chuckling.

"Now, we are thinking about playing Alpha Commands," Tracker stated.

"As long as we get more dogs to play with," Ranger chuckled.

"That's the timed challenges game, right?", Hector asked.

Tracker nodded.

"So that's basically what you just did?", Hector asked.

"Kind of," Tracker responded. "But now we wanna play an actual game."

"We're in," Maximus stated, nodding to Hector.

They padded into the nearby barn, where Ginger and Zoey were watching the humans feed the cows. Hugo and Nick were poking at spider webs on the ceiling.

"Hey, dams," Ranger greeted.

Ginger and Zoey turned towards them.

"We're gonna play Alpha Commands," Ranger remarked.

"Let's go," Tracker added, gesturing his head.

"Of course," Zoey chuckled. The two dams joined them.

A goat walked in front of them. "Can I play, too, leader?", he asked.

Maximus looked slightly amused, glancing at Ranger and Tracker and back at the goat. "If you want to, I guess..."

"Cool!", the goat responded. "The humans are tending to my mate and kids today. I don't think the humans want me with them right now."

"Okay," Ranger responded slowly.

The dogs continued walking, the goat following. The farm's two new foals were having their hooves tended to by a farrier.

When the dogs walked by the pigs' pen, Rocky, Cocoa, and Sadie were playing with the piglets.

"Hey, Coach Ranger...", Ranger greeted.

"...and Coach Tracker, here," Tracker finished the sentence. "We need players for Alpha Commands."

The pups turned towards the coach dogs and, their tails wagging quickly, joined them. "We're in, coaches," Sadie agreed, Rocky and Cocoa nodding.

"Where's Chloe?", Hector asked.

"With Coach Deputy outside, I think," Rocky answered.

The farm's new calf frolicked towards them. "I wanna play, too!", she exclaimed.

"We wanna play too!", two of the piglets agreed, hopping over the wall of the pen.

"Do you guys even know how?", Cocoa asked, amused, exchanging glances between them.

"Of course I do!", the calf answered. "I've watched you dogs play it before."

"Us, too!", the piglets both agreed.

"The more players the better," Maximus chuckled.

"I'll play too," a spotted boar agreed. "I could use the exercise."

"Pigs," Cocoa snorted.

"You know, humans believe that pigs are very intelligent," a voice sounded from above. They all looked up, and saw it was Hugo.

"Maybe even smarter," Nick added, chuckling. "No offense," he added shaking his foot.

"Humans," Cocoa humphed. "They think they know everything."

"Too intelligent for their own good," Rocky agreed, rolling his eyes.

"Prove it," Cocoa stated to the pig.

"Let's go, everyone," Maximus ordered, pointing his paw towards the barn door. Hector knew he would not want to hear another fighting debate between species.

They all headed outside, where Chloe and Deputy were chatting near the barn door. They stopped when they saw the group. "Setting up a game, I presume?", Deputy asked.

"Alpha Commands, my friend," Maximus answered.

"We'll join the game," Chloe remarked, Deputy nodding.

The animals all gathered around the hill in the paddock.

"Now, who will be the 'alpha'?", Deputy asked. He looked at Maximus. "Leader?"

Maximus chuckled. "Alpha does not need to be 'alpha'."

Deputy chuckled back.

Maximus looked towards Hector. "Hector?"

Hector widened his eyes, and exchanged glances at the other players, and back at Maximus. "Me?", he asked, pointing to himself with his paw.

"Yeah," Maximus suggested, smiling and nodding. "You be the 'alpha'."

"Uh, okay," Hector responded, not expecting Maximus to say that. He went up and sat on top of the hill.

"Just be practical," Maximus added to Hector. "'Omegas'?", Maximus asked the others.

"Ooh, pick me, pick me!", the goat exclaimed, raising his hoof. "Me, me, me!"

"Not a shock, at all," Deputy commented.

"I'll be an 'omega'," Cocoa agreed. "I'm good at getting in the way, aren't I, Max?", he stated to Max, blinking mischievously.

Maximus rolled his eyes.

" _I_ ' _m the real omega_ ," Hector thought, feeling a little embarrassed to be the 'alpha' of this game.

Maximus, Deputy, Chloe, Ranger, Tracker, Zoey, and the spotted boar chose to be the 'betas'. The game began.

"Alpha commands 'run and touch the barn, and run back, and touch the hill'," Hector announced.

The animals got ready to run, digging their claws and hooves into the soil.

"Ready?", Hector continued. "Set? GO!"

The 'betas' darted off to touch the barn. The 'omegas' chased after them. Rocky and Cocoa stood in front of Chloe, halting her, blocking her way. "Where ya going, sis?", Cocoa chuckled. Chloe jumped over them and continued running. "That's girl-power," she commented back at them.

The goat butted Ranger's body, making him fly a few feet and fall on his side. The goat laughed in triumph.

The calf kicked Tracker's body with her hind hooves and Tracker rolled several feet aside, stopping on his back.

Both Ranger and Tracker jumped up and continued to run, as quickly as they could.

"Take this, Max!", Sadie exclaimed. She hopped up onto Maximus's head and blocked his vision. He kept running, shaking his head back and forth, losing his coordination.

The two piglets jumped in front of Deputy and leaped onto him, one blocking his vision, and the other hitting his back with his hooves. Deputy ignored them and tried running faster.

Ginger hopped onto the boar's back, and clawed at his sides. The boar squealed, and jumped up and down as rapidly as he could.

The animals reached the barn.

Rocky and Cocoa were nearly touching Chloe and Zoey's tails. They jumped up high, and kicked themselves off the barn, flying briefly over their chasers. "That's double girl-power," the two female dogs stated together.

Ranger and Tracker touched the barn and swiftly turned and ran back simultaneously, shoving each other. The goat and calf leaped right in front of them, making them halt. The two dogs jumped on top of them, and jumped off, continuing to run.

The boar spun around in circles, and Ginger flew off, losing her grip, and the boar ended in hitting his body against the barn, and continued to run.

Maximus and Deputy both jumped up high onto the barn, and made a big backflip, making the piglets and Sadie fall off, both male dogs landing in a front paw stand, and flipping once more, and then continued to run.

Hector, who was observing, had his eyes wide open in amazement. The 'betas' raced each other to the hill. The animals' fur got covered in soil as they slid to the hill, touching it. Zoey was the last one to make it.

"Zoey, you are 'out' of the 'pack'!", Hector announced, amused.

"Oh, holy ancestors," Zoey panted, rolling onto her back. "It must be my puppies. They give me extra weight to carry."

"Makes it harder to run, that's for sure," Ginger agreed, also panting.

"I know how you feel," the boar snorted, and panted, laying on his belly with his legs flat across the ground.

Zoey and Ginger exchanged baffled glances at each other. "You're not a sow."

"No, but I weigh hundreds of pounds," the boar corrected them.

"How can you weigh that much?", Hector asked.

"Swelled swine stereotype," Cocoa responded, giggling.

"You calling me obese?", the boar asked.

"Dude, you're a pig!", Cocoa replied blankly. "It's a compliment."

"Oh, yes, thank you, Cocoa," the boar responded.

Hector giggled.

"What now, 'alpha'?", Deputy asked Hector.

All the animals got back up.

The group continued to play varied races until only two 'betas' were left. Deputy won, by only a few steps. Maximus stated "good game" to Deputy. The other animals took a rest from all the physical activity.

Hector, Maximus, and Deputy walked into the horse barn. The farrier was tending to Champ. Another human was brushing Starlight. Rainstorm was standing nearby attached by a bridle to a pole. The three dogs walked up to Rainstorm.

"How was the game?", Rainstorm asked.

"Exhausting," Maximus chuckled.

"Challenging," Deputy added, smiling at Maximus.

"I liked being the 'alpha'!", Hector exclaimed.

"That's the easy role in the game," Rainstorm responded, amused.

"Max almost won, but Deputy beat him a few steps away from the hill," Hector recalled.

"It was ALMOST a tie," Maximus responded.

"Exercise is important," Deputy stated. "And this game is a great and fun way to get that needed exercise."

"It makes a lot more sense than playing fetch if you ask me," Hector retorted.

"Well, it is easier," Maximus responded.

"Yeah," Hector protested. "But what's the point? It's way too repetitive to be interesting!"

"Again, Hector," Maximus restated, "An animal's life is all about instinct vs. will."

"The humans expect you to instinctively fetch a stick, or ball, or flying disc," Deputy added. "If you don't do that, they will assume something is wrong with you."

"The humans do observe you differently than all the other dogs, don't they?", Rainstorm asked. "They obviously know how unique you are if you are not the one to fetch."

"I'm thirsty," Deputy sighed, changing the subject. "Let's get a drink." He started to walk away. Hector and Maximus followed him.

The humans were hosing down the spotted boar. Maximus and Deputy barked to the human, and she giggled and muttered a few words, and turned a knob on the end of the hose, the water pouring out more gently. She crouched down and held it out in front of the dogs. Maximus and Deputy drank the water quickly. When they were done, they wiped their tongues over their noses. Hector took his turn as well. When he was done, the human used her other hand to pet his head, and then went back to hosing down the boar. Hector joined Maximus and Deputy as they went back outside, heading back to the dog barn.

"Max?", Hector asked.

"Yeah?", Maximus replied.

"You hate it when you see your pack fighting, don't you?", Hector continued.

"Of course," Maximus responded. "My rules require all the animals here to get along."

"It can be hard at times, though," Deputy commented.

"Part of living on this farm is to get along with everyone," Maximus stated. "Regardless of species."

"But, Max, don't we dogs often hate cats?", Hector asked.

"Hector, it's a common misconception that all dogs and all cats hate each other," Maximus responded.

"Will animals vary in personality," Deputy added. "The only dogs and cats that never ever get along are the ones that are instinct animals."

"By instinct, dogs and cats will fight," Maximus explained.

"But by will, dogs and cats can live in harmony," Deputy added.

"You both get into fights with those feral felines," Hector protested.

"Of course we do," Deputy answered. "I mean, I don't particularly like cats. In fact, I usually state I hate them."

"But we get into quarrels with any animal here," Maximus stated. "Every once in a while. It's not always the cats."

"Just think of it this way, Hector," Deputy suggested. "Dogs accept having a master, but cats often define themselves as the very top. Cats could demand to choose what their owners do, while dogs would always want to obey their master."

"Dogs like to please their humans, while cats want to please themselves," Maximus added. "But with every species of will animal, many are masters of their own fate. They control their own destiny."

"The point is that will animals are meant to live in harmony together," Deputy stated.

"All of us, all who live on this farm, are all connected to each other," Maximus added. "We all believe in and follow our ancestors, we all feel empathy, and we all must respect each other. All of us must give thanks to our ancestors for the life and gifts that they give us."

"We should respect who we are meant to be, and be thankful for it," Deputy added. "And no matter what challenges and quarrels come between us, deep down, all of us here are connected."

"When an animal needs help, another animal is there to help," Maximus added. "And when one thing completely falls, another will grow and take its place."

"Not necessarily what was there before, but still something new and wonderful," Deputy added.

Hector nodded slowly.

The dogs reached back to their barn.

"I'm gonna snack again," Deputy told them, padding away into the house. Hector and Maximus settled onto the grass.

"Hector?", Maximus asked.

"Yeah?", Hector replied.

"The dogs here on this farm...", Maximus began.

"What?", Hector prompted.

Maximus sighed. "Have lived longer lives than other dogs in the world."

"Really?", Hector asked, amazed.

"Yes," Maximus answered. "Many other dogs in this world have not lived half as long as the dogs that lived here in the past. And we still live longer than many other dogs."

"Why is that?", Hector asked.

"Well..." Maximus hesitated for a few moments. "Dogs who have lived on this farm have passed down many, many, many generations of pedigreed purebred will dogs who have very strong faith in their ancestors."

Hector tilted his head in wonder.

"All will dogs believe in ancestors, but we on the farm have communicated with them a lot, lot more than other will dogs in the world."

"You mean, other dogs wouldn't receive prophecies?"

"I don't know for sure, but the great philosophies that we share helps to guide us through our lives. We are very, very close to our ancestors, closer than many other dogs."

Hector nodded slowly.

"Our ancestors reward our distinct, prominent faith with long and successful lives. It is also the healthy heritage that we have passed down for a very long time. Uncountable seasons go by as new offspring are born."

"But I was born so defective. Not only physically, but mentally, too."

Maximus sighed. "It must have been what the ancestors wanted, Hector."

"Wanted?"

"They felt that it was time for the world to see a will dog become something no other dog has become before."

Hector's eyes widened.

"They chose you to be that special unique canine."

Hector's ears perked.

"One day Hector, you will fulfill your prophecy, and in time, perhaps you will become the most intelligent, the most accomplished, the most extraordinary, and the most famous canine ever to walk the earth."

"But that dream is so big."

"No dream is too big, son. No path is too long. No challenge is too great."

Hector nodded slowly again. So much went through his mind. " _Have my ancestors brought me into this world to become the most extraordinary canine? Is that what my prophecy is all about_?", he thought.


	20. The First Communication With Humans

When the three dogs reached the barn, Bear and Bandit were padding up to them, with angered expressions on their faces. "Hey, Maximus?", they stated.

"What happened this time?," Maximus responded, sighing disapprovingly. "You look irritated at someone again."

"Or some-THING!", Bear responded.

"Some-THING?", Deputy asked.

"In the woods," Bandit remarked. "There's something out there."

Maximus's ears perked. "What did you see?"

"Saw nothing," Bear replied. "But there was a presence of something else."

"We were hiking through, and we found that deer herd," Bandit remarked.

"It was terrible," Bear added.

Deputy and Maximus shared a dumbfounded look at each other. Hector remembered when he and Chloe were in the meadow. The herd was enormous.

"What about the herd?", Deputy asked.

"The size!", Bear replied.

"There were several deer missing!", Bandit added.

"Are you sure the missing deer weren't just some place else?", Maximus asked, shaking his head slowly.

"Something wasn't right about it!", Bandit remarked.

"When we searched nearby, we found...", Bear paused.

"Found what?", Maximus demanded.

Bandit and Bear shared a concerned expression at each other. Maximus and Deputy did the same. Everyone sat down.

After several moments of silence, Bear finally spoke. "Blood."

Hector's eyed widened with shock, and his mouth began to gape. Maximus and Deputy also look surprised.

"Blood?", Deputy asked.

"What do you mean you saw blood?", Maximus asked.

"On the ground, staining the soil," Bandit answered.

"It smelled of deer," Bear added. "Someone or something must have killed those deer!"

"It could have been stray coyotes," Deputy responded. "Right, Max?"

Maximus thought for a moment.

"I don't think so," Bear responded, slowly shaking his head.

"I don't think coyotes are that willing to hunt deer," Maximus agreed. "They'd rather take on smaller animals."

"I can't remember ever seeing wolves or bears in this forest," Bear remarked.

"There has to be more to it than just assuming a smaller predator," Bandit added.

"I agree," Maximus responded, nodding his head slowly. "There is something suspicious about that."

"But what could it be?", Deputy asked.

The animals thought for a few moments.

Bandit stomped his paws. "This is complete foxdung! What kind of crazy son of a lapdog would kill for pleasure?", he exclaimed angrily.

"Father Noble!", Bear added. "We should go find whoever is doing it, and beat the karma into it!"

"Don't curse in front of my pup," Maximus responded sternly with a serious expression.

"If I'd find out who's been committing such a crime, I'd rip the fur off their pelts!", Bandit exclaimed.

"Let's not deal with this with physical threat," Maximus responded in the same tone. "Engaging in wanton violence should not be the answer."

"Unless it was absolutely necessary," Deputy added. Maximus turned to Deputy and nodded in agreement.

"What?", Bear responded. "What if that evil thing comes out and attacks us right here?"

"Do you two want to keep other animals safe from that mysterious danger?", Bandit added, "Or do you just value your fur way too much?"

"Deputy," Maximus stated to Deputy, ignoring the cats' continued arguing, "If what they're saying is true, we need to go out to investigate immediately."

"Maximus!", Bear exclaimed. Maximus turned his head back to the cats. "We are scared to death to sleep out there now!"

"What if it kills us in our sleep?", Bandit added.

"You're permitted to sleep with us in the barn," Maximus responded. "But you two need to come with us right now and lead us to exactly where you saw that blood."

Bandit and Bear nodded in agreement. They headed towards the horse-place immediately, Deputy following.

Hector followed Maximus into the barn. "Everyone!", Maximus announced loudly, so all the dogs inside could hear him.

As the dogs quieted down, Maximus continued. "There is an emergency. I know we have already before, but we must go search into the woods again. Right now. Some of you need to join me. Let's go!" Maximus turned and trotted off to the horse-place. Several other dogs followed him, murmuring worried statements at each other. Hector tried following the group as well. He got to the front of the group of dogs.

"Hector!", Maximus scolded in a hostile voice, whipping around to face Hector, letting the other dogs pass him.

Hector gasped and halted.

"You know you're staying here!", Maximus continued.

"But I want to help!", Hector protested.

"It's not your job to worry about these things!"

"I might recognize stuff we find from..."

"You're staying here!"

"But blood! It was in my...",

"You're not coming with us, and that's final!", Maximus silenced Hector, and quickly padded off, following the group to the horse-place.

"...dream," Hector finished quietly. Now that Hector heard that there was actual blood found in the forest, the fear of his nightmare coming true sent shivers from his head down to his paws.

"Hector?", Hector heard a voice from behind him. He turned to see Daisy walking up to him.

"Why won't Maximus just let me come with him?", Hector protested. "I have had the dreams! I'm the one who sparked him to do these investigations anyway!"

Daisy smiled a little, a hint of amusement coming from her expression.

"First, we are having fun, and now, he's yelling at me for no reason!", Hector continued. "What did I do?"

"Don't take it personally, dear," Daisy tried to quiet him down. "He only wants to keep you safe. He doesn't want to jeopardize you."

Hector sighed.

"You'll be six moons old before you know it," Daisy remarked. "Good things come to those who wait."

Hector shook his head slowly disapprovingly.

"Well, since Maximus is gone now," Daisy suggested, "do you want to do something with me?"

"I guess," Hector slowly agreed. He trotted towards the porch, and went inside the nearby house. Daisy followed him.

Hector and Daisy saw Hugo and Nick crawl in from an open window in the living room, and glide onto the piano.

"Another investigation happening, we saw," Nick commented when they saw Hector and Daisy.

"Let's hope those humans can keep being convinced about going on these recurring hikes into the woods," Hugo added.

"What are you two up to?", Nick asked.

"Nothing at the moment," Hector answered.

They heard the front door open behind them, and a female human came walking in, and headed into the back room where Hugo and Nick usually slept. They followed her.

Inside the room, a male human was fidgeting with a tray of some sort in front of what looked like a small teevee, sitting in an odd-looking mobile chair. The female human was saying something to him, and he responded by stopping what he was doing and turning his head and saying something back. They were in a slightly annoyed conversation for a few moments, and then he got up, and joined the female human as they both walked outside the room, and headed outside.

The animals were still inside the room. "What was that all about I wonder," Hector commented.

"She was probably informing him about the dogs wanting to go on another investigation," Daisy answered.

"He sure looked and sounded like he didn't want to go out hiking right now," Hugo chuckled.

"Hmm...", Hector walked towards the object the human was using. "What is that?"

Hector leaped on top of the chair, and stumbled when it slightly moved. He reached up with his paws, and pushed the board forward, and climbed up onto the table it was on. Daisy hopped onto the chair, and the parrots perched on its top.

Hector looked down at the board, and squinted his eyes a little to see. They appeared to be the marks he sees when he reads! But they did not seem to form a single marking. They were jumbled up. "These are reading markings!", Hector commented.

Daisy glanced at the parrots, and they chuckled.

Hector looked at the box with a bright screen above, and it showed several black markings in sequences across a white background, just like with books.

"Humans use these all the time," Hugo explained. "They use that little thing next to it to use it." He pointed to a little paw-sized object with a cord like the teevee has.

Hector took his paw and moved it, and looked at a very small icon moving on the screen. When he pressed it on bolded markings towards the top of the screen, he saw more markings pop up. He moved the icon across the bolded markings, and as he moved the icon down the new markings, they lit up in a blue color. He squinted to read what the markings said. "New?", he read. He pressed it, and another white sheet popped up on the screen, with another icon on it blinking.

"The humans press the markings on the board to place them on the white sheet," Hugo stated.

Hector took his paw and pressed one of the markings. It showed on the screen. He pressed another, and another did. "Whoa...", he responded, patting his paws across the board to see several more markings appear. When he pressed the bigger buttons, it made the markings separate from the previous ones. "This is so cool!", Hector exclaimed. "Isn't it cool, Daisy?"

Daisy looked a little concerned. "I hope the humans will be gone for a while..."

"The humans may be feeling skeptical about me having done that book incident," Hector remarked. "If I were to place sequences of markings on this screen, and they read it, I could actually TALK to them!"

Daisy kept the concerned expression. She looked up at the parrots, and there were a few moments of silence. "Potentially," Nick slowly agreed.

"This is it!", Hector exclaimed. "This is how I am going to tell the humans that I didn't do it! And I can tell them that it was Buster, and Owen, and..."

"Are there some things happening that you aren't telling me about, Hector?", Daisy interrupted him.

"Who cares?", Hector responded. "With this technique, I'll never get blamed again!"

Daisy and the parrots did not look to reassured.

"I have watched those videos, Hugo and Nick, so many times," Hector went on, "that I know those markings by heart!" Hector looked down at the board, and after pressing a bigger button on the right, he started pressing marks. "Let's see," he spoke, as he pressed on the buttons, and glancing up and down as they appeared on the screen. "I...did...not...tear...up...the...books...It...was...Bus...ter...and...his...other...sib...lings...They...did...it...to...an...ger...me..."

As Hector was pressing the markings, Daisy was showing a look of surprise and amazement.

"They...", Hector was still pressing, "...knew...I...would...get...blamed...and...they...would...not," he finished.

Daisy was astonished at the sequences of markings on the screen. Hector looked at her, and chuckled. "I told you I know those videos inside and out."

"You mean the things you watch down there?", Daisy asked, pointing her paws towards the floor to refer to the basement.

"Yeah," Hector replied. "You've seen me do that!"

Daisy slowly nodded and blinked.

"Now the humans will know!", Hector exclaimed. "Let's go get them! Show them what I marked!"

"Hold on," Nick responded. "I don't think there are any here at the moment. They're either at the farm or the play-place tending to the other animals, or they are going on that search in the forest."

"Yeah," Daisy agreed. "You'll have to wait."

"Okay," Hector responded, shrugging his shoulders. "Let's just find out what else we can do with this!"

"Select that little blue object at the bottom of the screen," Hugo suggested.

Hector did so, and a series of images showed up on the screen now, with a little box at the top with the blinking icon again.

"Mark something tangible," Hugo continued.

"Tangible?", Hector asked.

"Yeah, something physical," Nick answered.

"Like, 'dog'?", Hector asked. He marked "dog" into the little box.

"Now press the bigger right button on the board," Hugo directed.

"I think it says 'en...ter...'", Hector read it. He pressed on it, and on the screen popped different images, images of several dogs. Hector saw that they looked quite different, each of them.

Hugo chuckled.

"Wow," Hector responded. "There sure are lots of other types of dogs, aren't there?"

"Yes," Daisy chuckled. "There are many other types besides us."

"We are small hounds, right?", Hector asked. "That's what our kind are called."

"Yes," Daisy responded. "We are small hounds. But there are also hounds, that are bigger than small hounds."

Hector sounded out the marking "hound" into the box, and pressed "Enter" again. Images popped up of other dogs, that looked a little different, and bigger, but had the same colors and patterns as small hounds.

Daisy told him about the other "races" of dogs, and he looked up the images of them. There are: the sighthounds, which are very thin; ratters, which are small and hunt small creatures, similar to small hounds; verminers, which are similar to ratters, but hunt slightly bigger animals; sporters, which hunt waterfowl; molossers, which have weirdly shaped faces and muzzles, and some are huge; spitzes, which are very fluffy with long muzzles; herders, which herd farm animals; small herders, which also herd farm animals, but are smaller in size; and lappies, which are tiny-sized dogs.

"How come we never see other dog races here on this farm?", Hector asked.

"This farm is for our kind only," Daisy explained. "Exclusively."

"In fact," Nick added. "Humans do not refer to different dogs as 'races' or 'kinds' or 'types' usually."

"I think they call the different dogs 'breeds'," Hugo added.

"Breeds?", Hector asked.

"Yeah," Hugo responded. "They refer to different kinds of small hounds, for example, by different names. And that also applies to the other 'races' that we animals refer different dogs to as."

"None of which we would know, anyway," Nick added. "Far too many to remember."

"So humans do not call us 'small hounds'," Hector stated.

"No," Nick answered, shaking his head. "Something else."

"I will at some point see these different types of dogs, though, right?", Hector asked.

"Of course," Daisy assured him. "Although, you should already have seen varied ones at the vet, or at least, heard them barking."

"Oh, I'm not sure," Hector remarked. "The humans usually take us in a non-see-through box."

"Well, when you get older," Daisy stated, "you will be able to visit other places. I promise that you won't be stranded on this farm for your entire life."

"All grown-up animals here have been other places, right?", Hector asked.

"Yeah," Daisy responded. "Even the cows go to their own show with the humans."

"And plenty of other humans that do not work here come here all the time," Hugo commented.

"The rescued dogs are given new homes," Hugo added.

"Homes?", Hector asked.

"Although," Nick added. "Some puppies born here are given new homes outside the farm. The ones that aren't 'rescued'."

"You mean, not all puppies born here live here forever?", Hector asked.

"Not all of them," Daisy slowly replied. "But...many...dogs here...are happier...than other dogs living here."

"Some of them want to live somewhere else," Nick added.

"Hmm," Hector responded. There were several moments of silence.

"I need a drink," Daisy broke the silence, changing the subject.

"Me, too," Hector agreed.

The two dogs padded into the kitchen, and took a drink from the water bowls. The parrots followed.

"I guess I have to wait until the humans come back here to show them the marked message," Hector remarked.

"Yeah," Daisy responded. "Let's find something else to do in the meantime."

They heard the flap on the front door, and Ginger and Zoey walked in, and went into the kitchen when they saw Hector and Daisy. "Hello," they greeted them.

"Hello, Ginger, Zoey," Daisy returned the greeting.

"It sure was crazy how the dogs were convincing the humans to join them on the trip," Zoey remarked. "We have heard that it was actually very significant this time."

"I could tell the humans about the blood too!", Hector remarked.

Ginger and Zoey looked at Hector with a confused expression. "Huh?", Zoey asked.

Daisy looked at them. "Nothing," she responded, shaking her head, "They are out there, right?"

"Yeah," Ginger replied. "Max obviously would not let us go."

"Why not?", Hector responded.

"Because we're pregnant," Ginger replied.

"There's a strict rule we have," Daisy stated. "Dams cannot enter the woods when they are pregnant or very recently whelped. Not unless there was a legitimate reason."

"So what are you guys up to?", Zoey asked.

"I'm gonna TALK to humans!", Hector exclaimed.

When Ginger and Zoey were giving dumbfounded looks, Daisy explained. "He was using that...marking...language...of his...to try and communicate to the humans."

"I have to wait until one comes here, though," Hector added. "Whatever we do, I need to stay in here and watch for a human. I have to catch them the moment they come in here."

"We're not doing anything right now," Ginger remarked. "We'll join in whatever you were gonna do."

"Have you two ever seen me play the piano?", Hector asked Ginger and Zoey.

Ginger and Zoey gave dumbfounded expressions at each other, and Hector immediately led into the living room without waiting for them to answer. They followed him.

Hector leaped up on to the white musical buttons on the piano, making a tune as he landed. The three female dogs sat next to the piano. The two parrots went on top of the piano.

"I will admit that I will be much better at playing the piano when I get bigger, when I can reach between these much easier," Hector stated. "One side has high sounds, the other with lower sounds." He demonstrated with pressing on the far left and far right buttons. "I've learned how humans would arrange these sounds into a pattern to create a tune."

Hector played a tune on the right side of the piano, and one on the left side of the piano. He played ones he heard the humans make.

"The humans have played these tunes before," Hector explained. "They have seen me do it. Chloe has taken notice of how baffled the humans look when they watch me play these tunes."

"Because it's not dog-like," Ginger responded. "Dogs don't interact with human objects like that. No animals for that matter."

"Then the humans are obviously impressed with me," Hector stated. "They are proud of me. They find me special."

"Yes," Daisy agreed. "And there's nothing wrong with being given particular attention from the humans. But some of the humans may think something else is wrong with you."

"Are you saying that I should not try and communicate with them?", Hector asked with concern. "With the marking language?"

The animals looked at each other with uncertainty. "Well, there is a rule that goes around that animals should never talk in front of humans," Daisy explained.

"But I can't understand why," Hector responded. "And besides, I'm not physically 'talking' in front of them. I am simply 'communicating' with them, without speech coming out of my mouth."

"I'm just not sure how the humans are gonna respond to that, Hector," Daisy continued. "Not that that's too spontaneous, or anything, but who knows what they're gonna do with you if they come to this realization."

"What do you mean?", Hector asked, sounding more concerned. "What do you mean 'do something' to me?"

"Animals that do weird stuff...", Hugo replied. "Well...any of a number things can happen to them."

"Like what?", Hector prompted.

There was silence for a few moments.

"They may take animals with weird behaviors to strange places," Hugo continued.

"What kind of strange places?" Hector prompted. He jumped down onto the bench.

"We couldn't explain it in words," Nick added.

"You really are worried about me, aren't you Daisy?", Hector asked.

"Well," Daisy sighed. "I'm afraid that if you act too much like this, you're not gonna live a peaceful life."

"What do you mean by 'peaceful'?", Hector asked.

"A life separated from others," Daisy elaborated. "A lonely life."

"That makes no sense!", Hector argued. "I catch every human's attention!"

"I don't mean it like that," Daisy responded.

"What if humans were to use you for...scientific evaluation...or testing...for some reason?," Hugo added.

"Many humans may not be interested in taking you in as a family member," Daisy added, "if this is what you are like."

"What humans would not want an extraordinary dog like me?", Hector argued. "What human would take no interest in me?"

"They may be scared of you," Nick responded. "They may not be sure how you'll act in a household."

"What we're trying to say, Hector," Hugo added, "is that the only humans that would be interested in you are the ones that would perform experiments on you. Ones who would only 'use' you. An average family of humans may be interested in watching such an interesting dog, but as a public phenomena. Not as a pet."

"And the thing is," Daisy added, "that humans who would do such scientific experimentation, in those strange places, would not actually love you. They would not ever think of you as a loving pet. They would only think of you as a test experiment. The only thing they would love is your abilities."

"So even the average human," Hector responded, "of a human family, would only think of me as a test subject, and not as an actual pet that they would love and care for?"

Daisy nodded.

"You are afraid that if I pursuit these interests of mine," Hector continued, with concern, "I won't live a life of happiness. I will spend my whole life being used for scientific evaluation, and will basically be locked up from the world forever. I would never receive love and affection from any human, because all of them would never see me as anything more than a thing to use for scientific testing. Humans would never regard me as an actual being with feelings and emotion. I'll never live in peace."

The three female dogs and two parrots nodded slowly, with worried expressions. Everyone went silent for several moments. Hector did not know what more to say. He knew that Maximus did not fully approve of everything he does. And not any of the other animals on the farm either. He wondered if this went on even in Buster's mind. Now he fully understood why other animals felt so differently about any animal following these more intellectual human-like pursuits. However, he was not too concerned. After all, he had a perfect home, on the farm. He knew all the humans on the farm loved him very much. Surely they wouldn't give him away to a miserable, dystopian life for such reasons. However, the thought did make him shiver.

Daisy broke the silence. "I'm sorry, Hector," Daisy guiltily told him. "We didn't mean to upset you. We just..."

"I know," Hector finished for her. "You just wanted to warn me, because you love me. You and Maximus love me very much, and you just want to protect me."

Daisy sighed, nodding slowly. "Max and I never mean to hurt you or offend you. We are just always very worried for your future."

"Us, too," Hugo added. "All us animals on the farm."

Hector nodded slowly. "It's okay," he responded. "I'm glad you guys told me." He sighed. "But I still want to talk to humans. It's such a dream of mine."

Daisy slowly nodded again. "If you want to show the next human or humans who come in here those markings, then do it," she told Hector.

Hector dipped his head thankfully.

"I kinda want to take a nap," Ginger changed the subject, stretching.

"Me, too," Zoey agreed, also stretching. "It can be quite tiring being pregnant."

"I know the feeling," Daisy chuckled. "Go ahead."

Ginger and Zoey padded off to the nearby barn.

"Hugo? Nick?", Daisy asked the two parrots.

"Yeah?", Nick replied.

"Perhaps you two should fly out into the woods and see what's going on," Daisy directed. "I am a little concerned. I want to know when they will be back. I'm just gonna stay in here with Hector."

"As you wish, leader," Hugo dipped his head respectfully. The two parrots went out the open window they came in, and flew off.

"It could be a while until a human comes back in here," Hector stated. He jumped down off the piano bench, and laid down on the soft carpet. He yawned.

"If you feel like taking a little nap, Hector," Daisy told him, "I'll wake you up when a human comes in. I don't really have anything better to do right now. I'm just gonna stay here and wait for Hugo and Nick to come back."

"Thanks, Mom," Hector responded.

They walked over to the couch and leaped up onto it. Daisy made herself comfortable, and Hector did the same, resting his head on the cushion. He fell asleep rather quickly.

Hector eventually opened his eyes. He looked around and saw three tall wooden walls around him and a wooden roof above him. There was a locked kennel gate in the front. He was in an outdoor kennel. There were soft cloths, a bowl of water, and a bowl of chow next to him. It was night, and he could hear nothing but crickets chirping. It felt as if there was no one there. It was just him in a locked kennel all by himself. He sniffed the air, and caught the stale scent of other puppies that must have been there before, but were now gone. He saw a tall white fence close to the door of the kennel. Since the kennel gate was locked, he could not get out, but he put his paw through one of the diamond-shaped holes in the gate, on the far right side of the gate, and reached out as far as he could. He felt another kennel gate, and realized that there were other kennels connected to the one he was in. " _Where am I_?", Hector thought, baffled. It certainly was not the farm.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice saying his name. He closed his eyes briefly.

Hector blinked awake to find himself back on the couch where he took his nap. "Hector?", Daisy said, "A human walked in."

Hector shook his head, the markings coming back to his mind. "Oh, yeah," he recalled.

Hector hopped off the couch, and padded quickly to the male human at the front door, his tail wagging excitedly. Daisy followed him, more calmly. Hector yipped excitedly at the human, and the human looked confusingly at him, muttering questionably in response. Hector kept yipping and gesturing to get the human to follow him. The human, and Daisy, followed Hector into the back room.

Hector leaped onto the chair, and pointed at the screen, which was now black. The human scratched his head in confusion, but walked closer. Hector took his paw and moved the small object with the cord. The screen came back on, and showed the white screen with Hector's marking sequences on it. Hector patted the screen with his paw to signal to the human to read it. The human bent down to look at the screen, placing his left hand on the table. Hector watched his eyes skim through the markings, and saw them widen, and his mouth gape open a little as he paused, and took his right hand and placed one finger on the screen, and moved it across the sequences marked on the screen. He murmured something, and Hector assumed he was reading it out loud.

The human turned to and stared at Hector in astonishment. Hector, looking at him straight in the eye, nodded his head slowly in response. Hector then, the human watching him in astonishment, climbed up onto the table, looked down at the board of marks, and added the sequence on the screen, 'Yes...I...marked...this...on...here'.

Hector then turned to look at the human again, and the human's mouth was gaped wide open, his eyes widened even more with complete shock. He muttered something, and then turned to run out of the room, and Hector heard him run out the front door, calling for someone.

Hector looked down at Daisy. "I think he took that pretty well," Hector commented.

"Anyone's guess," Daisy responded.

Several moments of silence went by, and suddenly they heard more humans coming in and running through the house. Four more humans joined the male human, and they rushed into the room. They immediately went up to Hector, and said something to him, as if asking him to show them.

Hector marked more sequences on the screen. He marked 'I...am...talk...ing...to...you...now...By...the...way...the...cats...found...blood...in...the...woods...and...that...is...why...Max...want...ed...to...go...in...the...woods...again.'

The humans were murmuring amazed statements to each other, all having astonished expressions on their faces. Excited, the humans ran out and it was as if they were going to go get every other human they could at the moment.

The rest of the time before Maximus's group came back was spent with Hector communicating with the humans through those marking sequences. The humans were obviously amazed with it, and Hector knew that they were very impressed with him. Hugo and Nick came back during Hector's nap, and told Daisy what time the group was coming back.

Hector heard Nick calling him, and he knew that the group was finally back. He raced outside the house, and saw Maximus, Deputy, and the other dogs of the group walk tiredly to the top of the hill near the garden.

"Maximus! Maximus!", Hector yelped to Maximus, racing towards him. "Something awesome happened when you were gone! You won't believe what happened!"

When Hector bumped into Maximus, it nearly made Maximus fall down, as he was exhausted from the hike. "What happened?", Maximus responded, yawning.

"I talked to the humans!", Hector exclaimed.

All the dogs of the group paused and looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

"You...talked?", Maximus asked suspiciously.

"Sort of," Hector replied. "I marked sequences on a screen and the humans actually read it and understood it!"

"Oh," Maximus responded. He was so tired, he looked like he did not even know how to respond to it.

"Isn't that amazing?", Hector prompted.

"Very," Maximus yawned.

"You don't look very impressed to hear that, Max. You sound sarcastic."

"I am shocked to hear that, Hector. We're just exhausted."

The other dogs walked into the barn.

"I knew it was possible!", Hector added to Maximus.

"I suppose now you are gonna teach yourself how to speak physically to them," Maximus responded.

"Somehow. I've spent plenty of time today listening closely to their sounds. Although they mostly marked sequence questions on the screen, as if they know I can't understand them that much yet."

"Good job, Hector," Maximus stated, and walked to the barn.

"Wait, what about your investigation?", Hector responded. "Can I hear about it?"

"Tomorrow, maybe," Maximus yawned.

Hector started to follow him, but a human came up from behind, and scooped up Hector, and brought him back into that back room with the screen of markings. When they got back in there, more and more humans were crowded up in that small room, seemingly asking to communicate with him.

Hector was placed back on the table, and the human gestured at him to mark more sequences. Hector obeyed, amazing more of the humans.

It was at least two hours until the humans finally decided to call it a night, and stop communicating with Hector. After all that commotion, Hector's brain felt fried, and he desperately wanted to sleep. He padded into the barn, and seeing that every one of the dogs was sound asleep, walked quietly to his nest. He spotted the four feral cats, Bandit, Bear, Misty, and Bella, all sleeping in nests they made for themselves in the straw as well. He could picture their minds being filled with terrifying images of what danger is lurking in those woods. He hoped that Maximus would tell him everything about the investigation the next day.

Hector settled himself comfortably next to Chloe, careful not to wake her. He fell asleep quickly.


	21. Beholding The Sacred Touch

Hector opened his eyes. He was still in the barn, but was in a different nest. It was still night, and it was silent. There were no other dogs in the barn.

He hurried outside, to the dirt-place, and still saw no one. However, when he padded over to the porch, he spotted Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker quietly stepping out of the flap of the front door. Their eyes narrowed and they nodded to each other as if in agreement.

"What's happening Coach Deputy?", Hector asked. "Where is everybody this late at night?"

None of the three coaching dogs responded to Hector's question. They just hurried off down the hill and towards the horse-place.

"What is going on?", Hector asked, half to himself.

"A sacred ceremony," a half-amused voice suddenly answered behind him.

Hector spun around to see a male dog. Hector gasped. He resembled the dark brown and white male dog he had seen before in the previous dream about Maximus and Daisy, but he was not tinted with a bright blue.

"You coming?", the male dog asked. "We would like you to see this."

"See what?", Hector responded. He briefly turned his head around and back to the dog. "Are you talking to me?"

The male dog chuckled. "Come along, young one," he gestured with his tail for Hector to follow. Hector followed, keeping up with the male dog's pace.

They arrived at the horse-place, and Hector looked around in amazement, seeing that every animal on the farm was there in a giant but quiet crowd. Even the rescued dogs were among them. There were no humans in sight.

Carefully making their way together through the maze of animals, Hector spotted Maximus, Daisy, Mary, and Ethan on top of the hill in the paddock, with several tiny puppies, that looked and sounded newborn.

"Are those newborn pups?" Hector asked the male dog.

"Yes," the male dog chuckled in response. "This is indeed a special night."

Several long moments of silence went by. Hector soon felt the cool breeze pick up more, and saw several leaves and debris being carried by the wind.

Suddenly, in response, Maximus and Daisy started to howl from on top of the hill. Ethan and Mary joined in. A few moments later, all the other dogs also howled with them.

When all the howling stopped shortly after, all the animals began to pad away together.

Hector stayed with the male dog as they went with the other animals. Hector almost hesitated when he realized all the animals were entering the woods. "Where are we going?", Hector asked the male dog.

"The sacred cave of murals," the male dog answered.

"Cave?", Hector responded. "You mean...the one within the big waterfall?"

"Yes," the male dog chuckled.

"Were you that presence I sensed in there?", Hector prompted. Hector recalled that eerie feeling that he had in the cave that he was not alone.

"Presence?"

"Yes."

"I do not know what you are referring to, young one," the male dog responded uneasily, as if he did not know what to say.

Hector felt as if he would never truly know who it was he sensed in that cave. He was starting to feel that he had not really sensed anyone at all, other than Chloe. It was all his imagination playing tricks on him.

As the group of animals were hiking through the long woods, Hector realized that while they were all talking to each other, they never acknowledged him or the male dog. "No one is speaking to us," Hector stated.

"No, they are not," the male dog responded.

"Why aren't they?", Hector prompted.

The male dog sighed and was silent for a few moments, as if he had not wanted to answer the question.

Hector decided not to protest, but then the male dog spoke again. "We are both in an astral plane."

"What?", Hector asked, his ears perked. "What does that mean?"

"The other animals are not conscious of us."

"Not conscious? You mean they cannot sense our presence?"

"That's right."

"But, how can you...why can I...", Hector stammered, confused.

"You are a precocious astral projector, young one," the male dog responded.

"A what?"

"I am not for sure how well you understand it, but you have travelled from earth to heavenly paradise, and back."

"Where? Are you talking about the beautiful meadow?"

"You have already experienced different planes of existence at such a young age."

"You mean like those good and bad dreams I am always having?"

"If anyone on earth will figure out how to travel through time, it will be you."

" _Time-travel_?", Hector thought. "That is what my prophecy is all about, isn't it?", Hector asked the male dog, with uncertainty.

The male dog sighed again. "We ancestors will watch over you very closely throughout your entire life. We will help to protect you. But one day your soul will have to leave your physical body forever, and spend eternity with us."

Several long moments of silence between the two dogs went by. Hector felt a little uncomfortable with those words. He has always known there is no escaping death. He knew that the ancestors gave him one chance, that day in the woods, when he had made a stupid mistake that nearly took his life. He knew it must have angered the ancestors. If he were an ordinary dog, one that had not been given an important prophecy by the ancestors, perhaps he might not have been given that second chance. He remembered when he was told that animals closest to their ancestors will live the longest and most successful lives of all, as a gift for their strong faith.

"You are the same dog I saw in a previous dream!", Hector exclaimed, speaking again. "You were making Maximus and Daisy the new leaders."

"Really?", the male dog responded, sounding as if he had not known.

"All packs have alphas, don't they?", Hector asked.

"There are very few packs like the pack here on this very old farm. This farm has been around for generations, and very many animals live together here."

"Most dogs do not live this type of life, do they?"

"No. Most dogs live their life with a human family."

"A human family?"

"Yes. There are only a few dogs in the world that live their life like the ones here do. The dogs here are much, much closer to their ancestors and the other animals than they are with the humans they have to live with."

"But dogs in a human family are much more loyal to their humans than the ones here."

"Yes."

"And we are obviously only talking about 'will' animals."

"Yes. Absolutely. Instinct animals do not have faith or loyalty."

Hector nodded.

"Our kind are almost never instinct dogs, though," the male dog explained. "Our kind have a very particularly positive natural temperament."

Hector nodded again.

The giant pack of animals traveled for quite a while, climbing over rocks and crossing small streams. Hector could tell that they wanted to be sure that they were all back by sunrise. He had no idea what would happen if the humans woke up and found all the animals on the farm gone.

After what felt like forever, the pack reached a familiar place to Hector. Hector recognized it from his adventure with Chloe. They reached the giant place where all around were gray shapes sticking out of the ground, each of them reading as "in memory of".

Hector sniffed around and also recognized the unsettling odor of the place. "What is this type of place?", Hector asked the male dog. "It reeks. It's creepy."

"It's where the ones who have passed are buried," the male dog responded, with disapproval in his eyes as he briefly looked towards Hector.

"Oh," Hector responded, partially embarrassed. He found it uncomfortable knowing that he was walking on top of deceased bodies. "Sorry. Don't mind the smell at all," he quickly finished.

When the pack finally reached the cave, Hector was pleased to see the beautiful place again, and heard the waterfall roaring nearby.

Maximus, Daisy, Mary, Ethan, Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker were in front of the rest of the pack with the newborn puppies, and stood in front of the big hole falling to the underground entrance into the cave. Deputy ordered all of the other animals to stay where they were, as the seven dogs and the newborn puppies were slowly taken inside the cave.

The breeze, which had been somewhat heavy throughout the entire hike, picked up even faster, with the debris and leaves among it, knocking Hector off his paws.

The male dog gestured Hector with his tail to follow him, and Hector obeyed. They both followed the dogs into the cave. They all walked through the dark tunnel, and into the giant cave with the collection of colorful murals on the walls. The two dams settled with the puppies in a comfortable spot in the cave.

The breeze continued into the cave, and Hector gaped his mouth open in amazement as the debris and leaves particularly circled around the male dog he had been talking to. The debris was also circling rapidly above, towards the top of the steps leading to the fort. The nearby dogs looked towards the male dog, and as Hector watched in shock, the bright elegant bluish glow covered him completely up. Hector realized that now the other dogs could see the ancestor dog, and that the bluish glow makes spirits visible to the living. Hector knew that they could not see him, though, because the glow was not forming around him.

"Greetings," Maximus greeted the now starry ancestor male dog. "Wonderful to see you again."

The dogs looked up towards the top of the cave, and as Hector also looked, his eyes widened bigger and his mouth gaped even more open when he spotted several other starry bright blue dogs gliding down carefully to the bottom of the cave.

Hector recognized one of them. It resembled the same dog that had told him his prophecy. When Hector stared at him for a few moments, he turned toward him, took notice, and as he smiled and dipped his head in greeting to Hector, Hector realized that all of the other starry ancestor dogs could see him too.

"New generations have been born," the dark brown and white starry dog announced. "We, the ancestors of our great descendants, shall bless each of these new offspring with the Sacred Touch."

"Our ancestors will give our offspring the Sacred Touch," the living dogs responded respectfully together.

"So that we ancestors will watch over and protect these new offspring," another starry dog added.

"Our ancestors will help guide our offspring," the living dogs responded.

"The Sacred Touch will offer each offspring the gift of a very long and successful life," another starry dog added.

"Our ancestors want to give our offspring a long life," the living dogs responded.

"But they must promise to always respect and to believe in their ancestors..." another starry dog added.

"Our offspring must have strong faith in our ancestors," the living dogs responded.

"In order to be given our precious gift," another starry dog added.

"The Sacred Touch is an offer. Our offspring must keep a strong oath. Their faith will be rewarded," the living dogs responded.

Each newborn pup one by one was touched gently with one paw by each starry dog, leaving a blue lighted paw-print on them, and each starry dog quoted something special to each one. When they got to the last pup, Hector realized with shock that it was him!

The male starry dog Hector was talking to touched newborn Hector first. As the male dog spoke, he kept his paw on newborn Hector. "I bless this pup with the Sacred Touch. I see extraordinary accomplishments in his future. I see him becoming something no other canine has become before. May he be ambitious, and be proud of what he will become." The male starry dog took his paw off newborn Hector, and let the next starry dog do the same.

"I bless this pup with the Sacred Touch. May he be many things when he grows up. May he change the world," the next starry dog stated. Then she let the next starry dog go.

The next stated, "I bless this pup with the Sacred Touch. May he be guided by empathy. May he know what is right and what is wrong. May he help others in need."

The next stated, "I bless this pup with the Sacred Touch. May he chase intellectual ambitions. May he become a genius."

After the rest of the starry dogs finished, Deputy got up and ran outside the cave through the tunnel. He quickly came back with the rest of the farm animals, walking in a line. One by one, each animal gave a prayer and statement of approval to the newborn pups, Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker taking their turn last.

After that, the animals all gathered in a seminar around the cave, the starry ancestor dogs and two dams and two sires in the middle. The proud starry dogs addressed several of the animals particularly, acknowledging accomplishments they have performed recently.

"Our blessed pups shall now mark their paws on the walls," a starry dog announced. "So that no matter what happens, no matter where they may go, they will always be a full member of this pack, and will always have close connection with us, their great ancestors."

The male dark brown and white starry dog picked up newborn Hector in his jaws, and as Hector watched in amazement, the starry dog carried newborn Hector as he flew up higher to reach a certain spot on the cave wall. When they reached a spot, he kept newborn Hector in his jaws, and held his tiny paws briefly, then released, and then placed his tiny paws on the wall, and held them there for a moment. When the paws were pulled away, a red-colored set up of paw-prints were left on the wall, and then the starry dog sprinkled what resembled blue sparkles and dust over the paw-prints. Hector was thinking that that was somehow a way to represent that those paw-prints were his own. There was actually a lot of open untouched space around where the paw-prints were placed. Hector was thinking that if the ancestors were predicting so many events happening in his future, that they would start to be drawn surrounding his paw-prints. After, the starry dog carefully flew back down to the ground, and placed newborn Hector gently back onto the ground.

Hector also found it suspicious that his paw-prints were marked with the color red. Not all the newborn pups were given the same color for their paw-prints. It was a little bit eerie to think about.

After all the newborn pups' paw-prints were placed on the cave wall among the other murals, the starry ancestor dogs said goodbye to all the animals, as they exited out of the cave through the dark tunnel. Maximus, Daisy, Ethan, and Mary stayed behind to have a private talk with the ancestors. Deputy, Ranger, Tracker, Champ, Starlight, and Rainstorm were ordered to wait until they were done to take them back to the farm.

Since Hector was still sitting right next to the starry dogs and remaining dogs, he listened to their conversation. The dark brown and white male starry dog spoke first. "Mary, Ethan, we do have to mention that we are disappointed of you rejecting your son," he said. "You two were violating your honor."

"The pup was born defective," Mary responded. "It was nearly a stillborn."

Hector's face made a shocked and fearful expression at those words. " _Stillborn_?", he thought.

"We all know how weak this pup is," Ethan added. "How could it possibly survive?"

"It smells as if it has some type of disorder," Mary added. "And it's much too malnourished."

"Face it. Pups born like this never survive," Ethan added. "Remember that this has happened before. But extremely rarely. And not with a pup this small in size."

"If a pup born much bigger than this runt has suffered the same way," Mary added, "and died, how could this tiny pup possibly survive?"

"We do not need a defective dog in our pack," Ethan added, in a more angered tone, "giving birth to more pups that will suffer the same things."

"One sniff after I whelped him," Mary added, in a more angered tone as well, "and that was all I needed to assume it just was not worth keeping alive."

"A pup like that should die," Ethan continued. "The farm can do without it."

"He would only produce more pups like that," Mary continued.

"If I was leader," Ethan continued, more furiously, at Maximus, "I would just throw this worthless piece of dung in the river and drown it."

"We really should just put it out of its misery," Mary agreed in the same tone. "The humans would not miss it. I am pretty sure they were intending to do the same anyway!"

"Before they gave it to you two!", Ethan agreed in the same tone. "We really should just throw it over that waterfall right now. With a brain disorder, for all we know, it could turn into an instinct dog!"

Hector was cowering down as he listened to what they were saying. He could not believe what he was hearing, such atrocious language, and right in front of their ancestors, too!

"You two are not the pack's leaders," Maximus snarled. "Daisy and I make the decisions."

"We both believe it is morally wrong to kill this puppy just because of how it was born," Daisy snarled.

"Enough, all of you," one of the starry dogs ordered in a firm, but not too angered, voice.

"Ethan, Mary," the male starry dog added in the same tone, "we know and understand that you two only want what is best for your pack. You two strongly believe that eliminating that pup would prevent another bad incident from occurring."

"But killing any pack member is just wrong," Daisy snarled. "It's evil!"

"Will animals do not murder!", Maximus snarled. "Only instinct animals would kill for pleasure!"

"We never said 'FOR PLEASURE'!", Ethan snarled. "There are completely rational reasons for..."

"There are NOT!", Maximus spat furiously back. "You cannot tell me it is right to kill that pup!", he yelled angrily at the starry dogs.

The starry dogs looked at each other uneasily, and there was silence for a few moments. "We know there is a reason for every will animal's opinion or decision," one of the starry dogs responded, "whether it is intended for right or wrong."

"Well," Maximus responded, "Daisy and I are the leaders. We were chosen to be the leaders for a reason."

"Yes, indeed," another starry dog responded. "We knew that you two would emanate positive influences on the rest of your pack members."

"And Maximus and I both heard your blessings loud and clear," Daisy responded. "You all see an incredible extraordinary life for the white puppy."

"We do," a starry dog responded. "We can see how a strange puppy can make a difference unlike other dogs."

Maximus and Daisy nodded slowly in response. Mary and Ethan only kept their angered expressions.

"Think about this," the male starry dog stated. "We ancestors intend for different destinies to be given to each of our descendants. We are willing to light the path each descendant chooses to take, for what they want to do in their life, and between what choices could be regarded as ethically right or wrong to other descendants, we have the power to decide on if each descendant is truly going for or against the oaths they gave to us promising they would give positive influence to the world."

A few moments of silence went by, and then the breeze with the debris and leaves picked up again swiftly, and as it gathered around the starry dogs, they slowly started to disappear, without saying anything else. When they apparently completely left the physical plane, Hector could no longer see them, so he thought they went back to the meadow.

"Well," Daisy broke the silence gently. "Let's head back to the farm. We must catch the sunrise before the humans do."

Just then, Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker appeared from the dark tunnel, with Champ, Starlight, and Rainstorm. "I felt the breeze pick up," Deputy stated. "I thought the ancestors must have left."

"Yes," Daisy answered. "We must go now. The sun will rise very soon."

As Deputy, Ranger, Tracker, and the three horses walked over to where the dams, sires, and puppies were at, Maximus said one last thing.

"Ethan, Mary," Maximus quietly but firmly stated to them, "you may be members of the pack, but you will never again be my friends."

"You will never again be my friends, either," Daisy added in the same tone.

Ethan and Mary only gave Maximus and Daisy blank expressions, as if they did not even care. Hector recalled Maximus mentioning that although he was once friends with Ethan and Mary, he was not anymore. This obviously was why.

The adult dogs mounted themselves and the puppies onto the three horses, and they quickly headed outside the cave to hurry back to the farm. Hector was left alone in the cave, now dark since the bright starry dogs left. Only the moonlight gave light. He decided to go up the steps. When he reached the fort, he recognized the water monsters and heard the top of the roaring waterfall close by. He approached the waterfall, and again enjoyed the cool feeling of the water droplets coming from it. He gazed across the beautiful view to the horizon beyond the bottom of the waterfall. He could tell that the sunrise was indeed close.

Hector closed his eyes slowly, and then all was black, the sound and scent of the waterfall fading away. He crouched down in a sleeping position, and blinked his eyes open to find himself back in the barn, in the nest of straw with Chloe. It was morning, and many of the dogs around him were still asleep.

Too many emotions were flooding through Hector. He was feeling anger, fear, disgust, apprehension, embarrassment, amazement, and shock, all at the same time. He was not sure exactly what to think. He obviously knew that he was born blind, but nearly a stillborn? And Hector could not imagine anyone having such despicable intentions.

Chloe woke up. She yawned, stretched, and sat up. Hector sat up and yawned, keeping an odd expression on his face. Chloe took notice. "Hector?", Chloe asked. "Is something troubling you this morning?"

Hector sighed.

"Did you have another nightmare?", Chloe asked with concern.

"Yes and no," Hector answered uneasily.

"What was it about?"

"I don't think I should tell you, as much as I would like to."

"Why not?"

"Well..."

"What are you two talking about?", Daisy interrupted, padding to them.

"Uh...", Hector responded uneasily.

"Hector had another nightmare," Chloe answered for Hector.

"Another nightmare?", Daisy responded with concern.

"No," Hector argued. "It wasn't a nightmare. It was just a...weird...dream."

"One that gave you such an expression on your face," Chloe suggested.

"It wasn't a scary dream," Hector sighed.

"Then what was it like?", Chloe prompted.

"I don't know how to describe it," Hector replied. "It was just odd." He quickly padded over to the water bowl to take a drink before Daisy and Chloe could prompt him more.

When Hector was drinking, another dog walked over and did the same. Hector looked up and it was Ethan drinking. When Hector stopped drinking, he took a few moments to stare at Ethan. Ethan took notice, and returned a stare at Hector when he finished drinking, with an odd expression like Hector. Hector backed away and padded off, not looking behind him to see if Ethan was still looking at him.

When Hector got outside, he made dirt by the nearby fence.

"Hey!", a voice sounded behind Hector. Hector spun around and saw it was Buster, Owen, and Gavin.

"What do you want?", Hector asked, irritated. He turned around so he could not see them.

"We know what you were doing last night," Buster remarked.

"And?", Hector replied, still irritated.

"We can assume what you told the humans," Owen remarked.

Hector did not respond.

"It doesn't seem as though they are doing anything about it though," Gavin chuckled.

"If anyone has a smaller brain than yours," Buster added, also chuckling, "it's all the humans here!"

"You gotta be asking yourself," Owen mocked, "'where's the justice?'"

"Same place as their minds," Gavin added, "nowhere!"

The bullies laughed. Hector responded with a more furious expression, but did not turn around to show them it.

"The humans obviously believe you don't even know what you are saying to them!", Owen teased.

"Your flea-brained 'marking language' means absolutely nothing to them!", Buster added. "Clearly none of the humans here care about you or your foxdung!"

Hector, absolutely furious, spun around, grabbed Buster's arm tight with his teeth, tossed him aside, and pounded onto Buster's belly, pinning his back down to the ground and digging his claws into him, snarling. "I'd rip your pelt off so hard right now, and scratch your eyes out, and tear your dirty liver out of you, but I'm not like you, you...you son of a lapdog!", Hector screamed furiously, loud enough for all the nearby animals to hear him loud and clear. "All three of you are!", Hector continued, sitting up, pointing to Owen and Gavin. He exclaimed, punching Owen in the face hard, then quickly punching Gavin hard in the stomach, and then biting Buster's other arm tightly, snarling.

"HEY! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?", a furious voice padded towards them.

Hector quickly released Buster, and froze, with a now shocked expression. He did not turn around to see them, but knew Maximus, Daisy, Ethan, and Mary were all padding up to them.

"Hector!", Maximus snarled.

"What happened?", Mary demanded, seeing bite marks and claw marks on Buster. "Are you alright, Buster?"

"What did you think you were doing, Hector?", Maximus snarled.

"Stupid white furball," Buster taunted Hector, rolling over onto his belly and getting up.

"These furballs started it!", Hector yelled angrily.

"You better watch your mouth," Daisy scolded Hector.

"Maximus! Daisy!", Ethan snapped furiously. "Get that wretched white runt away from our pups!"

"Get him out of here!", Mary added in the same tone.

"Do not tell your leaders what to do!", Maximus snapped furiously back. "You shut your mouth!"

"Don't you dare tell our parents to shut up!", Owen snarled.

Daisy prodded Hector with her nose to follow her, and they walked away. Hector still listened to the argument.

"You saw!", Mary snarled. "You saw what that runt did!"

"Punish him!", Ethan snarled. "Get him under control!"

"Do not speak to me like that!", Maximus spat furiously back.

"WE are not the ones who attacked Buster!", Ethan yelled furiously. "Why are you yelling at us? We did not do anything wrong!"

"It was that piece of dung you call a pup!", Mary added, pointing towards Hector.

Maximus spun around and stormed off into the garden. Daisy gestured with her tail for Hector to follow her into the garden as well. By then, a human had finally happened to walk in the dirt-place, and ran over to Buster, picked him up, examined him briefly, and carried him into the house. Hector had no idea what the human was thinking. But when the human briefly made eye contact with Hector, Hector assumed that the humans would ask him about that later through the markings.

When Maximus, Daisy, and Hector settled themselves next to the small cascades in the garden, Chloe met up with them and sat down too.

"Chloe?", Hector asked. "You...witnessed...that too, didn't you?"

"Yes," Chloe replied.

"Hector?", Maximus asked, in a firm, but calm voice. "What was all that about?"

Hector sighed.

"What were they saying to you this time?", Chloe prompted.

Hector just took an uncertain glance at each dog.

"Hector?", Maximus prompted.

"I'm sorry I attacked them, Maximus," Hector wept. "I won't do it again."

"You darn right you won't do it again," Maximus scolded. "This wanton violence is totally unacceptable."

"I didn't mean to," Hector cried. "They...they..."

"What on earth provoked it?", Daisy asked with concern.

"Those guys are complete jerks," Chloe answered for Hector. "They are always teasing him."

"Are there things you aren't telling us, dear?", Daisy prompted Hector, with concern.

"I don't wanna talk about it," Hector sobbed.

"I could sense your growing anger, son," Maximus remarked. "Even if they were taunting you, something else was troubling you first."

"Hector did say he had a strange dream last night," Daisy remarked.

"Yeah," Chloe responded. "Tell us about it, brother."

Hector wept for a moment, and paused. The three dogs were giving him worried expressions. There was silence for several moments, as Hector was thinking about what to say.

Hector finally asked, "Are pups born like I was often killed?"

The three dogs' faces widened with complete shock and horror.

Daisy gasped. "Where did you hear that?", she prompted.

"I heard it all last night," Hector explained. "I was there. The recent birth ceremony. I experienced it all. I listened to every statement spoken."

Maximus and Daisy exchanged glances at each other.

"I heard all that was said," Hector continued. "Pups born like I was, having several birth defects and much malnourishment, are often killed by either humans, or adult dogs, if they do not die on their own." Hector sobbed. "Is it true?"

Chloe's face was covered in horror, and looked as though she did not know how to respond. Maximus and Daisy looked at each other, as if they were asking each other nonverbally if they should lie or tell the truth.

Maximus and Daisy looked back at Hector. "It's partially true," Daisy explained. "Such pups are sometimes put out of their misery shortly after being born. Humans and adult dogs sometimes believe there is no hope for such pups."

"So...", Hector sobbed and stammered. "Daisy...if you...hadn't...well...I...would've...been...the humans...would have..." He paused, knowing he could not speak that full statement.

"Probably, dear," Daisy answered. "I regret to say that. You were very lucky to have pulled through."

"We both knew you had to understand that at some time," Maximus added. "But we wish you hadn't asked that at such a young age."

"When...", Hector sobbed, "Buster, Owen, and Gavin...they were telling me...how useless I was...how...the humans...have no deep regard for me...or my...extraordinary skills."

"How could they say such things?", Daisy asked.

"Cuz that's the type of animal they are!", Chloe angrily exclaimed. "They do not care about anyone but themselves!"

Maximus shook his head slowly, and looked at Daisy. "Ethan and Mary...they just don't want to put the same influence on pups as we do."

"I hate them," Hector responded. "And they hate me."

"We understand that not all animals get along together," Maximus responded.

"But, Hector," Daisy added. "There's good in everyone."

"Will animals are not known to be evil," Maximus added.

"Mary and Ethan always wanted to get rid of me, though," Hector protested. "If that's not evil, I don't know what is."

"Do not get us wrong, son," Maximus responded. "We do not approve of those intentions."

"Certainly not," Daisy added. "We were not going to let that happen."

"But Mary and Ethan knew for certain that you were greatly suffering," Maximus explained. "They knew you were living in pain."

"Their belief is that a life of suffering," Daisy added, "and physical and emotional pain and distress, is a life just not worth living."

"What Daisy and I believed was that you needed to fight," Maximus added. "We felt that you should be put through that terrible suffering, in hopes that in time, it would go away."

"Instead of ending your suffering by death," Daisy added. "The ancestors agreed with Maximus and I that a very young pup that suffered much adversity, beginning with a rough start of life, may become one of the most successful animals of all."

Maximus and Daisy slowly nodded, their expressions giving a question of if Hector was understanding.

"I understand," Hector responded. It was silent for several moments as Hector was in thought. He realized he had to understand that there is good in everyone. Ethan and Mary must have been spreading a different influence on Buster and Hector's other littermates. It could explain why they are bullies. However their parents were influencing them must be why they were so mean. It must be why they act the way they act. They would not be so mean if they had different parents, giving them a different type of guidance and way of being raised. Hector was also thinking that the humans were not wanting him to suffer more wrath from the bullies from punishing them for what they apparently always did to Hector.

Maximus broke the silence. "So, Hector," he tried to make his voice sound happier, "you wanted to know about the investigation in the woods?"

Hector calmed down from his sobbing. "Yeah," he tried to cheer up. "I did want to know. And I also wanted to tell you what I told the humans through those markings."


	22. A Revelation From The Past

"I'm sure you told all the humans everything that has happened to you so far," Daisy remarked. "And that you'll keep telling them more."

"Yeah," Hector responded. "But I don't think they're gonna punish all who picked on me."

"Humans discipline their dogs in odd ways," Maximus responded. "I guess I could say that they are much more likely to punish a dog immediately after its bad actions, not at an ongoing behavior. They probably think the dogs would not know for certain what they did wrong, and therefore would learn nothing."

Hector sighed.

"What you have to remember, Hector," Maximus continued, "is that humans and animals think differently. In fact, some humans consider animals inferior compared to them."

"Humans don't fully understand how we think," Daisy added.

"Well," Hector sighed. "I did tell them about what happened in the forest. And when..."

"You didn't tell them about that story I told you that night, did you?", Maximus interrupted in a somewhat firm voice.

Hector paused for a moment. "I...I only told them...my prophecy...and that I was told about it in a vision."

"A vision?", Maximus responded.

"But I didn't go into too much detail." Hector continued. "I also told them about those nightmares of mine."

Maximus and Daisy nodded slowly.

"What?", Hector asked. "Is it wrong to talk about that stuff to humans?"

"Well," Daisy responded, "The humans were in possibly more shock about seeing that dried blood on the soil than they would have been without you...communicating...with them."

"Well," Hector responded, "now I can tell the humans everything they should know that you couldn't tell them."

"I suppose that is true," Maximus responded. "But keep in mind that they don't think like we do."

"What do you mean?", Hector asked.

"Humans likely believe in the syrinx doing all the work for the parrots," Maximus added. "I mean, they certainly can get away with mimicking their language."

"Humans may perceive anything you say as something else," Daisy explained. "They may not fully understand, or think you know for certain what you are saying."

"That sounds like something Buster, Owen, and Gavin were saying a few minutes ago," Hector sighed. "The humans may not be able to believe everything I tell them."

Maximus and Daisy nodded slowly again.

"But they were so mean about it!", Hector added. "It's as if they were gonna take advantage over all of this, when this was supposed to be for my benefit! They are such flea-brained..."

"Hector," Daisy interrupted in a firm voice. "Do not curse."

"Everyone does," Hector argued.

"Yeah," Chloe agreed. "Everyone uses bad terms."

"Just because adults do so," Daisy added. "That does not mean you should, too."

"Why does it matter?", Hector asked. "What real harm is it calling someone a lapdog?"

"That's a very offensive term, Hector," Maximus scolded. "Do not ever say that. Neither of you."

"What does it even mean anyway?", Chloe asked.

Maximus sighed. "It refers to someone that serves no purpose and never does anything to help others or respect his or her humans."

"We know you're both very young and are just being influenced by adults," Daisy remarked, "but ask us if you're not sure if a term is bad to say or not."

"Okay," Hector and Chloe slowly agreed, still not feeling it was a big deal at all.

"Well, anyway," Maximus shook his head and changed the subject, "we did indeed show the humans that deer blood."

"What else did you find?", Hector prompted.

"Yeah, I'm curious too," Chloe agreed.

"You were told about this too, weren't you, Chloe?", Daisy remarked.

"Yeah," Chloe nodded.

"Well," Maximus stated, "we did find a few dead animals in the open meadow where the deer are usually seen."

"Really?" Hector asked.

"What kind of animals?", Chloe asked.

"A few pheasants, rabbits, skunks, opossums..." Maximus explained.

"The beavers sure seemed extra wary," Daisy added. "We only smelled them. They would not come out of their lodges."

"There are foxes in the forest," Maximus added. "But there was no fresh scent of them."

"It's as if half the animals in those woods are terrified of...", Daisy broke off.

"Whatever seems to be out there," Hector and Chloe finished.

"We will soon know the truth," Maximus stated. "And we will get rid of whatever it is."

"Did you see any wolf or bear tracks?" Chloe asked.

"No," Daisy slowly answered. "There are no bears or wolves in our forest."

Maximus sighed. "But, the most alarming thing we found...was...", he broke off.

"Was what?", Hector prompted.

"We smelled humans," Maximus answered.

"Humans?", Hector asked. "You mean, strangers? Intruders?"

"Possibly," Daisy responded. "The farm always welcomes visiting humans into the forest."

"And they always have fun riding the water monsters down the waterfall and through that river below," Maximus added.

"Oh, yeah, those water monsters," Chloe remarked.

"When Chloe and I were there," Hector added, "those water monsters looked as if they had not been ridden in a long time."

Daisy chuckled. "That's because no one rides them in cold weather when there is snow and ice."

"And visitor humans haven't gone into the forest yet," Maximus added, "since the weather got warm again."

"It doesn't usually take long for the visitors to visit the woods," Daisy added, "but I guess events on the farm are just happening slower this year."

"So," Hector remarked, "those humans cannot be visitors then, can they?"

"Visitors have to ask permission from and be guided by the humans here on the farm," Daisy responded. "So they're probably not visitors."

"Maybe it's those humans that are killing those animals," Hector remarked. "Humans hunt, don't they?"

"There are humans who hunt, yes," Daisy stated. "Some with dogs like us, actually."

"But there are also humans who have a more unjustified mind," Maximus stated. "One reason explaining how different humans are compared to animals."

"In terms of how they think," Daisy added. "In how they think to act."

"You're saying they're 'bad' humans, then?", Hector asked.

"We don't know," Maximus stated. "All we know is that they are entering our forest without consent. And this forest belongs to the farm. It's a very sacred place for us. And those humans are trespassing on it."

"Those humans will be found though, right?", Chloe asked.

"We will know what is really happening soon," Maximus answered.

There was silence for a few moments. Hector felt very uncomfortable hearing about all this. The memory of feeling a presence in the cave was making it more unsettling.

"I don't really need to apologize to those bullies, do I?", Hector asked, changing the subject, with uncertainty. "They deserved it."

Daisy sighed. "Do not react with violence, Hector."

"Tell us if they're giving you trouble," Maximus added.

Hector nodded.

"Buster is always flirting with me," Chloe blankly remarked. "It's pretty clear that he wants me to be his future mate."

Maximus and Daisy looked at each other and shook their head slowly with disapproving expressions.

"I mean, Buster is quite handsome and strong," Chloe continued, chuckling. "I won't argue with that. But he seems like the type of dog that will become too sexually..."

"Chloe," Maximus silenced in a firm voice. "You're too young. Do not speak of that. Got it?"

Chloe's eyes just widened, and she looked a little shocked at Maximus's sudden tone. She nodded slowly, with a confused expression.

Hector did not dare to express it, but he was amused at Chloe saying that. He knew that she did not like Buster at all. "So, I don't have to apologize or anything, right?", Hector asked again. "Ethan and Mary sure seemed as though they will be demanding an apology from me."

"Daisy and I are in charge," Maximus sighed. "But do not do that again."

"I won't," Hector promised.

"Good," Daisy agreed.

Maximus and Daisy got up and padded out of the garden without saying anything else.

Chloe turned towards Hector. "I'm proud of you," she remarked. "Those jerks deserved it."

"Thanks, Chloe," Hector agreed. He sighed. "But I think the only thing that did was create more anger and hatred."

"Well," Chloe stated, "there will be times when your anger grows so much that you'll be inclined to do something like that."

Hector sighed.

"I mean, surely Max and Daisy both know that sometimes you gotta get your anger out somehow, get it out of your system."

"Whatever it takes?"

"Yeah."

"Well, hopefully I didn't hurt them too badly."

"I doubt it. They were probably faking any real pain."

"Wouldn't surprise me. That's for sure. And I'm gonna tell the humans what they said."

"You should do it right now."

"Agreed."

Chloe followed Hector as he ran out of the garden, through the flap into the house, and into the room with that screen with the markings. There was a human in there in front of it, and Hector immediately leaped up onto his lap, and onto the board of markings. He marked "Those...bullies...told...me...that...this...marking...language...means...nothing...to...you...humans...It...made...me...so...angry...that...I...was...provoked...into...attacking...them...like...that."

Another human ran in after the human in the room called out for another. The humans read the markings on the screen, and nodded their heads at Hector in response. The humans replied with marking "We...believe...you." Hector nodded his head in response.

Hector hopped down and Chloe followed him as he padded out of the room.

"Incredible, I have to say, Hector," Chloe commented.

"Thanks, Chloe," Hector replied. "Now I have to learn how to speak to them verbally."

"That'll be tougher, though, won't it?"

"Well, as I am closely listening to them so much, their language is only becoming clearer. And I also have to speak at a frequency humans can hear."

"How do you think they would first react to you talking, though? I probably asked this before."

"I think it could be anyone's guess. I just hope I won't turn into a science experiment, like I've been warned."

"When are you gonna try talking?"

"I'm not sure. But Hugo and Nick are obviously talented at mimicking human speech. They will help me."

"Are you thinking of trying that today?"

"Maybe. But not when there are humans around."

Chloe nodded.

When they got back outside, they decided to head over to the horse-place again. When they reached the white fence in front of the paddock, they stopped and sat down. The four feral cats were relaxing in that spot.

"Hi," Chloe greeted.

"Hello," Misty greeted, yawning.

"You put on quite a show over there," Bandit remarked, amused.

"Who?", Hector asked, glancing over his shoulder. "Me?"

"Yeah," Bandit replied. "It sure was entertaining to watch."

"Entertaining," Hector echoed, in a blank tone. He turned to stare at the barn for a moment, and shivered.

"What is it?", Chloe asked.

"I still find it uncomfortable to look at the color red," Hector remarked. "That nightmare...it never gets out of my head."

"You just had a dream about the Sacred Touch blessing ceremony," Bella remarked.

"How did you know about that?", Hector asked.

"I was kind of spying from a branch on that oak tree," Bella replied. "You can see the whole garden from the top."

"Well," Hector sighed. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."

"That's okay," Bandit responded in an amused tone. "We don't wanna hear about it anyway."

Bella rolled her eyes.

"You know what, Hector?", Misty remarked. "I think you got the color red stuck in your subconscious mind."

"Subconscious mind?", Hector asked.

"It's gonna influence you...", Misty explained, "...your whole life."

"You mean it's gonna frighten me my whole life," Hector responded.

"Not necessarily," Misty stated. "There may be 'good red' in your future."

" _The term 'red' is in my prophecy_ ," Hector thought. There was silence for a few moments.

"So," Chloe broke the brief silence, "What are you guys up to?"

"Not much," Bear sighed. "We're not intended to go in the woods."

"The humans looked confused to see us sleeping in the barn," Bandit stated. "We only sleep indoors when it's snowing outside."

"But we reckon the humans also assume we are nervous about what's lurking out there," Bear added.

"I wonder if Buster would be scared to go out there," Hector remarked. "Surely he has to have a fear of something."

"He'd probably go out there in the woods just to express how strong and brave he thinks he is," Bella responded.

"He's too mean and tough to cower from anything, though," Hector stated.

"Everyone has a fear," Bear responded. "Even the alpha Maximus is scared of some things."

"Like what?", Chloe asked, "I can't see him being afraid!"

"Well," Bear responded, "perhaps 'scared of something' wasn't the right way to say it."

"It's more like Maximus has scary moments of his life trapped in his mind," Misty added. "And there are things that remind him of them..."

"...And therefore prevent those memories from being completely cleared from his mind," Bella added.

"Hector said he doesn't want to talk about that stuff," Chloe argued.

Hector gave her a worried glance. "What memories?", Hector asked.

The four cats gave each other a concerned expression, as if they were mentally asking each other if they should say something.

"Chloe?", Hector started, in a worried tone.

"Yes?", Chloe responded.

"I...", Hector explained, "I...do you remember...when I told you I was given a prophecy by the ancestors?"

The cats' ears perked.

"Yes, I do," Chloe responded.

"Well...I...", Hector hesitated. He looked at the cats, who had curious faces, and was not sure what Maximus and Daisy might or might not have told them. "I do believe I was in the golden meadow...when my ancestors spoke to me."

"Golden meadow?", Chloe asked.

"I...", Hector continued, "received that prophecy...during that incident with the river...that day."

Chloe's eyes widened.

The cats were giving worried expressions.

"Maximus told me a...story...", Hector explained, "about a golden meadow...a beautiful paradise...where will animals go to when they...they...when they die."

Chloe's eyes shifted into a more worried expression.

"You're saying you had a near-death experience?", Bear asked.

"I believe so," Hector replied. "It's been implied."

"Hector," Misty stated, "...you did not see the emotions and expressions on Maximus's face that night, when you were laying unconscious by the river."

Hector gave the cats a confused expression.

"We were pretty certain we knew for sure what was on his mind," Bear added.

"What was it?", Hector prompted.

The cats glanced at each other, and were silent for a few moments, seemingly hesitant to say more.

Misty sighed. "Should we tell?", she asked.

Bella sighed. "He is certainly someone who should know."

"Hector," Bandit explained, "...Maximus had a near-death experience."

Chloe's eyes widened.

Hector looked more shocked. "What? When?"

"It was a long time ago," Misty explained, "...when Max was in his youth."

"He claimed that he was walking in a beautiful golden meadow," Bella added, "...and that he spoke to mysterious dogs there."

"But Max told me that he wouldn't know much about the meadow until he traveled there himself," Hector recalled.

"Max said he was not there very long," Bella responded.

"But why wouldn't he tell me?", Hector argued.

"He must not have known how to," Misty responded.

"But still these days," Bandit added, "...Maximus claims that he is a gifted astral projector."

" _Astral projector_?", Hector thought.

"Meaning he's been able to leave his physical body," Bear added, "...and travel to different places."

"Through deep meditation and sleep," Bella added.

Hector remembered how Maximus was meditating that night of the incident. Maximus must have been speaking to the ancestors, with reminding of his own near-death experience. Maximus was hesitant to mention the term 'death'. Hector was very confused. Maximus did not seem to know about Hector's prophecy, but Hector wondered if all along Maximus knew Hector had a near-death experience, because the ancestors told him, and that just like him, Hector was now a gifted astral projector. "What happened to him?", Hector finally asked.

"Were you ever told the story about how Maximus saved Deputy from a bear?", Misty replied.

Hector nodded.

"It was a very aggressive, giant male black bear," Bandit stated. "Deputy was trying to fight it, but he was no match for it. Deputy was weakened to the point where he could no longer move, and he was trapped in a small ravine by the bear..."

"Deputy was about to be killed by the bear...", Bella added, "...but just then, Maximus, in full strength, raced up to the bear, and attacked it from behind."

"Maximus bit deep, and held on tight," Bear added.

"In full agony, the bear tried jerking Max off..." Bandit added.

"But as it couldn't," Bear added, "Max let go and jumped off it when it tried crushing him instead."

"Max kept fighting it," Bella added, "to get it to chase him and leave Deputy alone."

"As the bear was chasing Max," Misty added, "Max almost halted when he saw a very long thin log acting as a bridge between two cliffs."

"Below it was a nasty fall," Bear added. "Trapped between the log and the bear, Max thought quickly. Max darted across it, but the moment the bear ran onto the log, its heavy weight made the log go down."

"Max leaped forward to try and catch the other side of the cliff," Bandit added. "But it was too late. He went down with the log and the bear."

"The log was not underneath either of their paws," Misty added. "When they hit the bottom of the cliffs, the bear was dead."

"When the pack finally found Max," Bella added, "they found that although he had broken bones, and was badly wounded, he miraculously had somehow survived."

"It was not long after that had happened that he had told his story," Bandit finished.

Hector and Chloe were both completely amazed. "That is incredible," Hector commented.

"That is amazing!", Chloe agreed.

"All four of us were just kittens when we were told this story," Bella remarked.

"Well then why haven't my siblings been told about the golden meadow?", Hector asked.

"As much as grown-ups would find it easier to tell about it when their offspring are older," Bear replied, "it's mostly because it's usually when offspring reach a year old that they officially give their promises to their ancestors following the birth blessings."

"Sometimes a little later if something odd happens," Misty added. "But it's always at a very young age."

"Were you all a year old when you gave your oaths?", Chloe asked.

"I don't remember," Misty responded. "Do you guys remember?", she asked the other cats.

The other cats shook their head.

"What did you mean by 'something odd'?", Hector asked.

"Well, for example," Bella explained, "...here on the farm, dogs do not always stay here in this pack forever."

"You mean they run away?", Chloe asked.

"No," Bandit responded. "Sometimes pups born here are taken somewhere else by the humans."

"And they don't come back," Bear added.

"Where do they take them?", Chloe asked.

"They eventually end up somewhere outside this rural countryside," Bear explained.

"With a human family?", Hector recalled.

"Yeah," Misty replied. "Somewhere with lots of houses, lots of monsters, lots of juvenile humans..."

"...And usually there are no barns, no forests, no open fields...", Bella added.

"...Those places look absolutely nothing like this farm, let's put it," Bandit added.

"Have you guys ever been to those kind of places before?", Chloe asked.

The cats shook their heads. "No," Bella answered. "We've only heard about them."

"We've never left this rural countryside," Misty added.

"Have you guys ever rode in a monster?", Chloe asked.

"Maybe once or twice," Bear answered.

"You've all been to the vet, right?", Chloe asked.

"I reckon that's the only place we've ever been taken to in a monster," Misty answered.

"We've gotten worms before," Bandit stated. "And we went to the humans for help."

"And we were cut when we were younger," Bella added.

"There are other feral cats in the forest, right?", Hector asked.

"Don't you guys have parents and siblings?", Chloe agreed.

"We four chose to live on the farm," Misty explained. "I have no idea where my family is. Do you guys know where yours are?", she asked the other cats.

The other cats shook their head.

"We cats are a more solitary creature," Bandit stated. "You dogs are more of a social creature."

"Do you guys remember your parents' and siblings' names?", Hector asked.

The cats glanced at each other with uncertainty, and shook their heads.

"We probably ran into them at one time," Bear chuckled, "...as we have seen other cats in the forest. Just not often."

"And you wouldn't recognize them, or vice versa?", Chloe asked.

"Probably the case," Bandit responded. "We cats are super intelligent, but we are still loners. It is not uncommon for us to leave our families and go out on our own to live our own life. We control our own destiny."

"But I assure you," Misty added, "the four of us are very close with each other."

"Feral cats do often live in colonies, though," Bear added. "But I'm not sure if the four of us really make a colony."

"After all," Bella added, "we belong in this pack. This farm."

"So, you don't even miss your families?", Hector asked, with a confused face.

The cats looked at each other with uncertainty again, and thought in silence for a few moments.

"We just don't remember them that well," Bella stated.

"We four chose to live our lives on this farm, in this pack," Misty stated. "The pack on this farm is our family."

"This farm is a beautiful place," Bella added. "It's home."

"That's all we ever wanted," Misty added. "We wanted a beautiful home. And we found it here on the farm."

Several moments of silence went by, as if everyone was in very deep thought.


	23. A Being Named Father Noble

A human approaching them broke the silence. She murmured a greeting to the cats, and then another statement to Hector and Chloe as she picked them up and carried them back to the house next to the dog barn. When they got there, she placed the two pups down in the kitchen, where they realized they haven't eaten yet.

"Great," Hector sarcastically remarked. "More chow."

"So?", Chloe argued.

"How can dogs eat this stuff on a regular basis?", Hector argued.

"Well," Chloe responded, "they probably just get so used to the flavors of chow over time, it tastes just fine."

Hector just sighed and ate the chow with Chloe. After taking a drink from a water bowl, they felt a gush of air above them as Hugo and Nick flew into the room and landed on a table.

A human was chopping orange sphere-shaped foods on a white board. She chuckled and said something to the two parrots. The two parrots repeated her exact statement, and she hand-fed them both a slice, as if to reward them.

"You know what I'm thinking, about those foods?" Hector stated to Chloe.

"They smell really bad?", Chloe responded.

"No," Hector replied slowly. "I think the parrots were repeating the term for those foods. I think the term has more than one meaning."

"More than one? Human language is too confusing."

"I mean, I've heard that same term before, but I don't think it was referring to those foods then."

"Hey, Nick?", Hector addressed Nick. "What is that thing you're eating?"

"Orange," Nick responded.

"I know it's orange," Hector remarked. "What is it called?"

"Orange," Nick responded.

"You're eating an orange food that is called an orange?", Hector asked.

"Yes," Nick replied. "What, do you want to try a slice?"

Hector twitched his nose. "No."

"Then why did you ask?", Nick responded.

"I was wondering if...", Hector paused. He sighed. "I'll ask later."

As Hector turned around and went back outside, Chloe followed.

"The humans have no strange reaction to the parrots mimicking them," Hector remarked. "They were so shocked when they saw me marking their terms, though."

"All parrots probably mimic humans, Hector," Chloe responded.

"But I still don't understand why other animals wouldn't try talking to humans. Speaking at a different frequency. That's the key thing, right?"

"Well, only you would bother to try learning their entire language, Hector."

"Hey, I just thought of something. Do you think humans actually speak more than one language?"

"Now that would take even longer, Hector."

"Canines and felines speak different, right?"

"Well, all the animals that live on this farm speak canine."

"But the first will animals on Earth, how did they learn to talk?"

"That's a very good question, I'll have to admit, Hector."

"What are you two talking about?" another voice responded. It was Ranger. Tracker was with him.

"That stunt you performed?", Tracker asked.

"No," Hector firmly answered.

"Believe me, Hector," Ranger stated, "Tracker and I have been in physical fights before."

"But we forget about them later," Tracker added, "as if they never even happened, or it don't matter anymore that they happened."

"We weren't talking about that!", Hector responded firmly.

"Then what is this 'question' you were referring to?", Ranger asked.

Hector, Chloe following, stepped down the steps from the porch and stopped and sat down some feet from them.

"Ranger, Tracker," Hector asked, "where did will animals come from?"

Ranger and Tracker glanced at each other with uncertain expressions, as if they were confused on why they were asked that question. "Will animals?", Ranger replied.

"Yes," Hector replied, "how did they come to be?"

Ranger and Tracker shook their heads slowly and sighed. "Long story, Hector," Tracker stated. "A very long story."

"I've got time," Hector remarked.

"Well, we ain't telling you a long story, pup," Tracker replied.

"Can you at least give me an answer?", Hector argued.

"Father Noble," Ranger stated.

"Who?", Hector and Chloe both replied at the same time.

"Father Noble," Tracker echoed.

"Who's Father Noble?", Chloe asked.

Ranger and Tracker chuckled. "A divine being will animals believe in."

Hector and Chloe gave confused expressions.

"Father Noble is the most well known being in will animals' beliefs," Ranger explained.

"Some believe he was the very first domesticated wolf," Tracker added. "Thousands of years ago."

"And some believe that he was just the very first will animal," Ranger added.

Hector and Chloe only responded with interested expressions, implying that they wanted to here more.

"Father Noble was born a mortal wolf," Tracker continued to explain.

"He particularly took interest in how the humans communicated to each other," Ranger added, "and their way of life."

"Noble spread his interest to other wolves," Tracker added. "On his final few days on Earth, he communicated to a god of the humans' beliefs. Noble still wanted to continue his teachings after his death."

"The god agreed, and Noble was given a true soul," Ranger added. "When Noble died, he was reincarnated, and taken to live in a heavenly paradise in the afterlife for eternity."

"Noble promised the god that he would teach and protect the future animals that lived with humans," Tracker added.

"Over time," Tracker added, "wolves were living with humans more and more, being taught by Father Noble. Soon, other species became domesticated as well."

"Cats and horses were the most easily taught animals, however," Ranger added. "Their intelligence was far greater than the other new species."

"It is also said that Father Noble's new reincarnated body changed over time," Tracker added, "as the new species were being domesticated."

"Some say his paradise appearance resembles part canine, part feline, part ungulate, part bird, and a few others," Ranger added. "But he has the power to turn himself temporarily into the form of any domesticated animal he wants, when he appears to the living."

"Most often, however," Tracker added, "he takes the form of a large, beautiful wolf."

"Will dogs today still believe they are descended from Father Noble," Ranger added.

"There are other beings will animals have believed in as well," Tracker added, "but Father Noble is obviously the most well known of them."

"Our deceased ancestors live with Father Noble in the heavenly paradise with the golden meadow," Ranger finished.

"That is amazing," Hector responded with fascination.

"Very amazing," Chloe agreed.

"And that means that humans have their own beliefs as well," Hector remarked. "They have faith, too."

"We can suggest they still do," Ranger responded. "But we certainly do not know who's or what teachings they live upon."

"I'm curious to know," Hector stated.

"I can assure you, though, Hector," Ranger replied, "that their beliefs can't be the same exact beliefs we have."

"Well, obviously not," Hector agreed. "But, maybe their beliefs can be connected to ours."

"Not something any will animal needs to know, though," Ranger stated.

Humans calling for Ranger and Tracker stopped the conversation.

"Well, see you later," Tracker responded to the calls.

Ranger and Tracker got up, and trotted over the humans.

Hector went into thought. Maximus told him about the paradise, and the ancestors, but not the beings called gods. Hector wondered if it was Father Noble who had first created his prophecy, and the ancestors who knew about it were told it from Noble. Hector wondered why an ancestor told him his prophecy instead of Father Noble. Hector had to admit to himself that Father Noble sounded like something mythical, the story only a legend. Hector remembered though that when he told that starry dog about how it was in his vision dream of Maximus and Daisy's leader ceremony, the starry dog did not seem to know that. If there was no starry dog that had actually taken notice of his deserted presence while he was at that ceremony, then perhaps it was Father Noble who had allowed him to witness it. Still, Hector thought that, although he was told that a wolf he may come across could be Noble, Noble may not appear to the living as much as the ancestors. The ancestors perhaps more watch over their relatives and friends, but Noble watches over all will animals. Perhaps although Father Noble communicates with the animals on this farm, he would only appear to them on very rare occasions. Noble would be very busy keeping a very close eye on every single will animal on Earth. If Maximus and Daisy had not been at that river that night to rescue Hector and Chloe, then maybe Noble would have appeared there to rescue them instead, as it was a time of peril. Was Father Noble the mysterious presence Hector had sensed in the cave? The ancestor that had told Hector his prophecy seemed as though that he had expected Hector to be there in the meadow at that very time. The ancestor also refused to answer Hector's questions, including if he had been the presence in the cave. If Father Noble was the presence in the cave, then he was there to watch Hector and Chloe. Noble must have told the ancestors then that one of them would be telling Hector the prophecy that night, as he knew that Hector would drown in the river. And if Noble really did let Hector drown, to be sent to the meadow, there would be a reason. Having a near-death experience certainly would not only get a point across that the ancestors were determined to keep Hector alive, but also imply that Hector's prophecy was more important than any destiny ever created. Hector thought about what he had been warned before, about what his already rough life might be like in the future if he kept pursuing such anthropomorphic interests. Something that would happen that would not only make Hector doubt himself, but direct him down a long path to a life very unlike the lives of the animals here on the farm, who communicate with their ancestors everyday, and therefore have the most faith and belief any will animal can have.

"Chloe?", Hector asked, looking beside him. Hector had been in such long deep thought, that he had not realized that Chloe was no longer with him. She must have went somewhere else after Hector must not have responded to her. A little embarrassed, he shook his head quickly to completely get those thoughts out of his head.

He turned and went back inside, into the living room. He hopped on top of the piano, and played a few mellow tunes he played before. A few humans inside sat down on the sofa and watched him play, murmuring statements to each other. As he was finishing a last tune, Daisy walked inside through the flap on the front door.

A moment after Hector finished playing the tune, Daisy spoke. "Hector?"

Hector sighed. "What is it Daisy?"

"Humans want you at the horse-place."

"For what?"

"Training."

"Training?"

"A test, sort of."

"Do I really have to?"

"Yes."

Hector rolled his eyes and followed Daisy to the horse-place.

"Daisy?", Hector asked, when they were half-way there. "Do all the grown-up animals here talk to Father Noble?"

"Where did you learn that?", Daisy chuckled.

"Ranger and Tracker. They told Chloe and me about a supernatural being called Father Noble."

"Yes, we do. Maximus and Deputy probably speak to him more than everyone else, though."

"How?"

"Well, they visit the cave of murals near the waterfall often. At night, of course. Although they usually speak to the ancestors, sometimes they talk to Noble."

"Do they communicate with actual spoken voices?"

"Usually it is through flying debris and leaves."

"I thought the ancestors manifest themselves with that."

"They do. But Noble often communicates through that. The ancestors are more likely to speak with voices, or even appear."

"The humans never visit the forest during nighttime, do they?"

"Very rarely. But we animals interact with the ancestors during the night."

"When humans are not present to witness?"

"Yes. Here on the farm, we can summon our ancestors when we need to. For pets, dogs and cats that live in human families, though, there is less opportunity. They need to find somewhere private."

"The cave is very private."

"Indeed. And very sacred. Very protected. Both Father Noble and the ancestors heavily guard the place. It cannot be destroyed by anything."

Hector nodded slowly. " _It cannot be destroyed by anything?_ ," he echoed in his mind. Hector was now thinking that the mural cave would be the safest refuge then from the mysterious thing in the woods. After all, it could sneak out to the barns at night when everyone's asleep.

When they reached the horse-place, the other pups, including the older ones, were gathered in the paddock, several humans gathered around. One human, the master, turned around, and seeing Hector, called and gestured him over to join. Hector padded towards the group, and finding Chloe, sat next to her.

"You alright, Hector?", Chloe asked.

"You were trying to talk to me back there, weren't you?", Hector replied.

"Clearly you were in deep thought about something."

"Yes, I was. This is where you went, then."

The master human put himself standing in front of the pups to address them all. He spoke in a loud voice, getting every pup's attention. As he spoke, he commanded different terms, that meant different tricks.

Hector obeyed the commands. One meant sit, another lay down, another roll over, and many others. Although Hector knew all of them, a few of the pups around him were not sure about some of the commands. Chloe knew all of them though too.

As the commands happened, the master appeared to be marking on a board with a utensil. When the commands were done, he stopped marking, and handed the tools to another human. The master picked up a bag smelling of treats. He reached his hand inside, and grabbed half a handful of treats. Swinging his hand up, he threw all the treats in the air towards the pups, yelling a command that meant "catch".

In response, the pups all jumped up to catch the treats. Hector did not try the first round, but the master kept throwing treats. When Hector did try, other pups kept towering over him and catching the ones he tried catching. On the last round of throwing treats, Hector finally caught one in his mouth. But right after, before Hector could start chewing it, Buster, who moved next to him, took his paw and hit it roughly out of Hector's mouth, hurting him.

"Ow!", Hector exclaimed in response, taking his paw and briefly rubbing his mouth with it.

As Hector did, Buster immediately picked up, chewed, and swallowed the treat. "Hey!", Hector exclaimed in response. "That was mine!"

"The master did not throw that treat so YOU could catch it, did he?", Buster taunted Hector. "It wasn't your treat."

"That means it wasn't yours either!", Chloe firmly responded.

"Yeah, well..." Buster argued. "That was for what you did earlier, Runt," he taunted to Hector.

Hector growled.

"What are you gonna do about it?", Buster taunted. "Attack me again?"

"My father and mother say to never resolve an argument with wanton violence!", Hector firmly responded.

"Ethan and Mary said we have to teach you a lesson!", Buster spat back, as Owen and Gavin sat beside Buster. "One way or another."

"Cut it out, Buster!", Chloe scolded.

"Here we go again, Chloe," Buster stated, half-amused, brushing past Hector to Chloe. "Just admit it already!"

"Admit what?", Chloe spat.

"That I'm more powerful than any pup here!", Buster boasted.

Chloe humphed, turned around, and shut her eyes.

Buster leaned over on top of her back. "You are so difficult," Buster said in a flirty tone, right in her ear, "aren't you?"

As Buster licked Chloe's cheek and ear affectionately, she gave a disgusted growl, and smacked him in the face with her paw.

Buster let go with a groan, and trotted off with Owen and Gavin. Chloe humphed again, and trotted off in the opposite direction.

Hector looked around, and saw that most of the pups gathered around the other humans, to be given more commands, to get more treats.

He padded off into the nearby barn. As he swiped straw with his paws as he walked across the floor of the barn, he stopped when he came in front of a human who was using a hose. He yipped, and the human gave him a drink from the hose. A moment after he continued on, he decided to lay down for few minutes next to a stall.

"Taking a break from stuff?", Hector heard Misty's voice from above him. He looked up to see her. She was standing on top of a stack of hay.

"Yeah," Hector responded.

Misty jumped down from it to sit next to Hector. "Buster gave you more trouble during the training?", she asked.

"How did you see it happen?", Hector asked.

"Oh, I didn't see it happen," Misty chuckled. "I just assumed it happened."

Hector sighed. "Chloe is my best friend, but I kinda feel embarrassed when she stands up for me."

"You certainly stood up for yourself earlier," Misty stated.

"I know," Hector sighed. "But then I got yelled at."

"Chloe argues with Buster, yes?", Misty asked.

"Chloe hates Buster as much as I do," Hector murmured.

"But Buster certainly likes her," Misty chuckled.

"I guess...", Hector sighed, rolling his eyes. "Regardless that Chloe is present, he still wants to pick on me."

"Isn't it obvious, Hector?", Misty remarked, with amusement in her expression.

"What's obvious?", Hector gave an uncertain expression.

"Buster boasts about having great strength, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, picking on someone must make him feel stronger."

"And?"

"And...he is probably showing off for Chloe."

Hector's eyes started to widen.

"Buster wants to show more weakness in you," Misty stated. "He wants Chloe to be sick of doing this for you. He wants to prove to Chloe that she belongs with him..."

Hector's eyes widened more with a dumbfounded expression.

"...not with you." Misty smiled.

"Belong?", Hector slowly responded.

"Mouse," Bear's amused voice interrupted.

Bear walked up to Misty, with a hunted mouse in his jaws. He dropped it in front of her.

"Are you trying to insult me?", Misty gave a blank expression to Bear in response.

"It's your mouse, Miss," Bear chuckled, pushing the mouse closer to Misty with his paw.

Bear padded away.

"Why would he be insulting you by giving you a snack?", Hector asked.

"Well," Misty explained, "This is the mouse I lost earlier. I am a skilled hunter, yet I didn't catch this mouse."

Misty bent down to eat the mouse.

"That's kinda gross...", Hector remarked.

"Gross?", Misty smiled. "It's delicious."

"Dogs don't eat mice, do they?"

"They could if they wanted to," Misty explained while she chewed. "But it's a cat's job to get rid of mice."

"But I'm a hound, right? Hounds hunt, don't they?"

"I can see your type hunting hares, but not mice."

"Misty, what did you mean by 'belong with'?", Hector asked, turning back to subject.

Misty gave Hector a brief dumbfounded look while licking her lips, as if she was confused that he had asked that question. She continued eating the mouse, without giving an answer.

Hector sighed, his head shaking slowly, and padded away.

As Hector was walking along the barn looking around at all the noisy animals, he stopped when he heard Daisy's voice coming from the nearby pigpen. He crept beside the pigpen, and listened.

"We know, Daisy." Ginger's voice spoke with uncertainty. "We're just so nervous."

"What if something happens to them?", Zoey's voice spoke nervously.

"Look," Daisy responded. "You two are my best friends. And I do not want to see you or your puppies getting hurt. But the mystery will reveal itself soon."

"Where we are right now does not feel safe with that danger lurking around," Ginger remarked.

"Don't you think we'd be safer in the mural cave?", Zoey prompted.

"Nothing sinister can enter the cave," Ginger added.

Hector's eyes widened.

"I know we would feel safe in the cave," Daisy responded, "but it would be much too risky to try going there after dark."

"We understand," Ginger sighed.

As Daisy got up and exited the pigpen, Hector quickly stood up and bolted away before she could see him. He headed outside to the paddock. When he felt far enough away, he slowed down, and walked back to the house next to the dog barn.

At the time, there wasn't a human in the living room. When Hector walked into the middle of the room, he saw something with markings on the short table. He hopped on top of the table, and looked down at it to read. It appeared to say that the humans told another group of humans about the potential danger in the woods. He wondered who they could be.

Just then, Hugo and Nick flew into the living room through a nearby window. Seeing Hector, they landed on the short table where Hector was.

"Watcha reading there, Hector?", Nick asked.

"Did the humans alert other humans about the danger?", Hector responded.

"Probably," Hugo answered. "There are humans that work specifically to protect others."

Hector had a worried expression.

"Something the matter, Hector?", Nick asked, taking notice.

"Not really," Hector answered. "I'm just lost in so many crazy thoughts. That's all."

"What kind of crazy thoughts this time?", Nick asked, raising his head crest feathers, and briefly opening and closing his wings. "You always seem to have crazy thoughts."

"I know, but...", Hector sighed.

"Is there something we could do to help you right now?", Hugo asked, twitching his head.

Hector thought for a moment, and took another moment to just look at the two birds, thinking of what to say. "Humans would hear me speak if I spoke at a different frequency, right?", he finally said.

Hugo and Nick glanced at each other. "It's not enough," Nick answered. "Canine language cannot be heard or understood by humans."

"But if I said a term of theirs, at a different frequency, they would understand me, right?", Hector prompted.

"Potentially...", Hugo slowly answered with uncertainty.

"It's not difficult to speak at a different frequency, right?", Hector prompted.

"Well, with our syrinx," Hugo answered, "we have it easy. Using that physical organ of ours is just a normal sound creator for us parrots."

"And that's why humans seem to expect parrots to mimic their language?", Hector remarked.

"Yes," Nick answered. "But as for you, I can't say they'd react the same way."

"If it's your goal to be able to talk verbally to humans," Hugo answered, "I wouldn't try it until they've completely grown used to you speaking nonverbally."

"Oh, okay," Hector sighed. "I was gonna ask you two to walk me through human speech, but..."

"This time is not the right time," Nick stated, shaking his head.

"You're gonna say 'six moons of age', aren't you?", Hector retorted.

"How did you know?", Hugo chuckled.

"I just knew," Hector sighed.

"When puppies, and even kittens, turn six moons old...," Nick chuckled, "...things change for them."

"For now until then," Hugo added, "just use markings."

"Well, then, fine," Hector calmly but firmly stated. "I'll wait until I'm six moons old."

"Good," Hugo slowly nodded.

For the rest of the day, Hector could not escape all his new thoughts. At nightfall, when everyone on the farm was settling down to sleep, Hector was about to cuddle next to Chloe, who was already asleep, until he noticed that Maximus was not laying next to Daisy. He stood up, looked across the barn, squinting his eyes, but could not see him. He went up the steps leading to the garden on the roof of the dog barn. When he reached the top, he saw Maximus in the meditating position again at the other side. He walked up to him.

"Maximus?", Hector asked quietly.

In response, Maximus slowly opened his eyes, turning his head towards Hector.

"Are you trying to speak with the ancestors again?"

Maximus had a very worried expression. He sighed, and looked across the farm through the fence.

"What did they say?", Hector prompted.

Maximus sighed again. "They told me great grief is on its way here."

"Grief? What kind of grief?"

"They said that they do not know for sure, but the farm will greatly suffer because of this danger."

"What else did they tell you?"

"The grief will arrive within a matter of days."

Hector's eyes widened in shock and concern.

A long minute of silence went by as Hector and his father looked out to the forest.

"Did Father Noble speak to you?", Hector broke the silence.

Although Maximus's upset expression did not change much, his eyes showed a hint of shock in response. He turned back to Hector. "Who told you about Father Noble?"

"Did you speak with him?", Hector prompted, not answering.

Maximus sighed. "No. He is difficult to reach here."

"But not in the mural cave?"

Maximus took a moment before responding. "I do desperately wish Daisy and I could go to the mural cave right this moment. We need to speak to Noble right away. But it would be too dangerous to try venturing out through the woods at night in this situation. It's unsettling enough to during the day."

Hector slowly nodded with an expression like Maximus's. The two dogs both headed silently back to the nest, and went to sleep for the night.


	24. Denying A Nightmare

Hector woke up. Slowly opening his eyes, he found himself standing in the meadow in the forest. It was nighttime, but above him, there were no stars. Hector felt a very warm breeze present, and picked up an unfamiliar scent. After a few moments of only the sound of an eerie breeze, Hector heard voices. It sounded like more than one presence talking, but Hector could not understand what was being said. The voices were muffled, and coming from a distance away, towards the direction of the unfamiliar scent. Hector started to follow the scent and sounds. When he realized he had to reach the edge of the meadow in front of him, he ran. When he reached the edge, the scent was fresher, and the sound was much louder. But, after a moment when he reached the point, the voices and scent vanished.

Hector felt a chill run down his spine. He kept running forward, continuing through the maze of trees. After what felt like forever, he reached a clearing. He froze and gasped when he spotted a dark shadow of a human shape hovering over a small fire. There was no voice, but Hector could smell the unfamiliar scent again. Hector quickly crawled into a bramble thicket, hoping the figure hadn't noticed him. The figure showed an arm, and as it briefly swayed over the fire, the fire got bigger. And bigger. In no time, the fire was starting to spread across the clearing, and the whole area around Hector was turning blood red. The tree buds were disappearing as red crept up the trunks. The bramble around Hector was deteriorating, and he was already feeling the heat.

"No, no, NO! No!", Hector exclaimed. "This is only a nightmare! It's not real! It isn't real! It isn't real!"

Hector felt a paw jiggle his back. Hector opened his eyes and screamed, "It isn't real!"

When Hector caught his breath, he realized he was back in the dog barn again, in his nest. In front of Hector, Cocoa, Olivia, and Sadie were looking at him with sort of blank but disapproving expressions. Seeing Chloe next to him, she was the one who woke him up. A few adult dogs around were also taking a similar look at him.

"You okay?", Chloe asked with a worried expression.

Hector frowned and sighed.

"You woke me up, Runt!", Cocoa remarked impatiently. "I was having such a nice dream."

Chloe and Olivia glanced at Cocoa with a disapproving expression. Sadie just shook her head slowly, got up, and padded away.

"I was having a nightmare!", Hector retorted.

"Yeah," Cocoa scoffed. "The millionth one. Why don't you just go complain to Daisy about it so we don't have to listen?"

"What was it about, Hector?", Olivia asked, shooting an annoyed glance at Cocoa.

"It wasn't real," Hector replied. Hector got up and padded away.

"Hector's paws were really sweaty," Chloe remarked. Hector was still close enough to hear, and paused to look at his wet paws. Hector shook his head and kept going until he was outside.

Hector made dirt, and then trotted over to the nearby fence by the entrance. Bandit was laying next to it, licking himself.

"Hey, Bandit?", Hector prompted.

Bandit stopped licking and looked at Hector with a blank expression. "What?"

"Was I...sleepwalking...last night?", Hector asked with a little embarrassment.

"I don't know," Bandit replied. "I didn't see it happen."

"Then it certainly wasn't real...", Hector remarked to himself.

Before Bandit could reply, Hector trotted away.

Deputy was also close by. Hector asked him as well, but he also said "no". Not worrying about the bad dream, Hector spent time in that basement. He watched various markings that seemed to represent numbers. Eventually, Hector heard someone entering the room and walking up to him. Hector turned around, and it was Daisy.

"Hector?", Daisy stated in a calm voice. "You had another nightmare, didn't you?"

"Yeah...", Hector sighed, clicking buttons that turned off the systems in front of him.

"Will you tell me what it was?"

"It wasn't much different than the ones I had before."

"Well, hopefully the forest will be safe soon."

"Why am I still having these stupid nightmares?", Hector exclaimed half to himself.

Daisy sighed.

"Maybe they're not even omens at all," Hector remarked. "Maybe it is just all in my head."

"They mean something..."

"But they keep happening over and over!", Hector argued. "As if I didn't get the point already that something bad was going to happen. No, no, no. That already happened! There are some kind of trespassers on our territory, and that was what it was! And I'm still having the bad dreams, and by now, they can't be warning me of something...that already happened!"

Daisy's eyes were wide, with an expression that was hard to interpret. After a few moments of silence, Daisy responded. "You...you were born with..." Daisy paused, as if she wasn't sure how to finish the statement.

"Defects?", Hector spat. "Yes, I know! I heard all about it! My brain is probably so deformed and overused, it never lets me rest it!"

"I was talking about...", Daisy tried to argue at a moment of pause.

"IT'S JUST ME! IT'S ONLY ME! IT CAN'T BE REAL!", Hector ignored her, shouting it out angrily, and getting up, and storming off out of the room, up the steps, not waiting for Daisy to reply.

Hector ran outside, muttering angrily to himself until he was next to the big pond in the garden near the house, and stopped to sit.

"Hector?", Hector heard.

Hector looked across the pond, and saw that Charlotte was laying nearby. Hector walked over to sit next to her.

"You look so angry," Charlotte remarked. "What happened?"

"Nothing," Hector snapped, but did not speak too angrily. "Nothing at all."

"Did you have another nightmare?", Charlotte asked.

"It doesn't matter," Hector snapped. "The only thing they mean is that I was born with a defective brain. It doesn't work like other dogs'."

"Well, you certainly are more intelligent than other dogs," Charlotte chuckled.

"Yeah...", Hector stated. "But why? Why do I feel more intelligent?" After a moment of silence, he added, "It's got to have something to do with my brain."

"I would find it hard to believe that you'll have nightmares every moon for the rest of your life," Charlotte responded.

Hector sighed. "I hope it'll go away someday."

Charlotte rested her head down on her paws, as if she did not know what else to say.

"What about those rescued dogs here?", Hector asked. "Are their minds changed?"

Charlotte let out a chuckle and started to snooze.

Hector sighed, took a drink from the pond, and trotted over to the garden's exit.

The moment Hector stepped out the gate, a large bright red pelt came flying over him. Hector yelped in terror as he rolled over a few times in it, becoming completely wrapped in it.

Hector stopped yelping when he heard loud laughter. Realizing it was a prank, Hector tried to get his small body out of the thing. When Hector finally got it off, he saw that it was Cocoa, Buster, and two older pups.

"Caught in your dream again, Runt?", Cocoa taunted. The four trotted away chuckling.

"Well, clearly THEY would think the dreams mean nothing important," Hector murmured angrily, and shook his body briefly then continued trotting away.

Hector was at the horse barn when the sun was finally setting. Hector was sitting on top of tall stacks of hay, watching the end-of-the-day activities happening inside. Misty and Bella walked by, and they leaped up on the stacks to lay down next to Hector.

"Crazy, isn't it?", Misty stated. "I should be in my den right now."

"We're stuck here in these stinky barns," Bella remarked.

"Well," Hector sighed. "By the time the woods open again, I might be six moons old."

"I don't think this will go on for THAT much longer," Misty responded.

"The humans are getting help, I think," Bella added.

"Wouldn't help have arrived by now, though?", Hector asked.

"Hard to say," Bella replied.

"This place is so far away from...human civilization.", Misty added.

"Where most humans live?", Hector asked, after a moment of silence.

"Yeah," Misty responded.

"Will I ever see those places?", Hector asked.

"I don't know," Bella responded. "Animals here travel to different places, but, places that are similar to here."

"I'm not even sure if the wise old Sebastian can remember the last time he had visited human civilization," Misty added.

"This is what this pack-like life is like," Bella remarked. "Not many animals live the life we do."

"We live in a sacred sanctuary surrounded by spirits, far far away from normal human civilization," Misty added.

"But, here we are," Bella retorted. "In a place that WAS a super safe haven, but now is surrounded by a dangerous phenomenon."

"I hope things will go back to normal, soon," Misty sighed. "I don't know how we can all sit through another day with this uncertainty."

Hector sighed, got up, and looked at the roof of the barn above. He spotted a place to climb, and managed to reach a window.

Hector looked at the view from the window, and saw the trees of the woods, and they seemed to go on forever. Hector looked at the sunset, and it made the shadows of the trees fall all across the farm.

Hector sat there in thought gazing at the horizon for a few minutes, as the sky got darker and darker. What wondrous worlds existed out there? Far beyond this sacred place?

Hector went back to the dog barn to sleep for the night. He had the same nightmare again, waking up with heat. However, it seemed longer than the previous one.

The next night, Hector fell asleep even earlier, and his nightmare seemed even longer. Much longer...


	25. Red Light And White Light

Hector was in another nightmare. But this time, he was surrounded by nothing but black. Hector smelled, heard, and saw nothing. It was just black. Desperate to find light, he started running. And running. Hector could feel nothing under his paws, and no wind passed by him as he ran. Hector felt so much energy, that he kept dashing for what felt like forever. No matter how far Hector traveled, he could not find light anywhere. Hector suddenly started to leap as far as he could over and over to see if he would still hit some sort of ground when he landed. After a minute, Hector suddenly heard a very loud noise, right in his ear. In response, he shut his eyes closed and as soon as he landed back down on the ground, he froze and hid his head in his paws. After several moments, he slowly opened his eyes.

Now, Hector could see something, even though it was still very dark. He looked around him, and realized he was in some sort of wooden room. He took a moment to catch his breath. When he stood up, he gritted his teeth as he felt pain. Looking at his body, there were small cuts and stains of blood. He turned around, and saw shattered pieces of glass on the floor, and a broken window above.

Before Hector could have had a few moments to think, he heard another sound. It sounded like a human whistling an eerie tune. Hector then heard footsteps, and scared, he glanced around for somewhere to hide. He sniffed around, and the room stunk badly. The floor underneath him was tiled, and his feet were cold as he hurried to a corner past the shattered window. There was a small table that he could just barely fit his small body under. It hurt to squeeze under there.

Hector listened to the whistling, and after it stopped, he heard a door creak open nearby. Footsteps walked inside. Hector heard muttering voices he couldn't understand. Another door, closer, creaked open, and the footsteps were now louder. Hector shivered, and held his breath as he saw the covered feet of humans slowly walking towards his hiding place. They stepped over the pieces of glass, and paused when they reached right in front of the small table. One of them grabbed something off the top of the table, spoke something, and all of them turned and walked back.

Hector came out from under the table, and quickly followed behind them, careful not to alert them of his presence. When they were back outside, it was in the middle of the night in the woods. Dark clouds were covering the whole sky. The moon and stars were nowhere to be seen. There was almost no light at all in the woods. Hector could hardly see with his blurry vision. As Hector looked at the humans, they were carrying large sticks, and had something over their heads that covered their faces. Hector followed them along a trail, scurrying to keep himself hidden in the vegetation.

Before they walked that far, they reached a small clearing. There was a light, and to avoid being seen, Hector hid inside some brambles. Hector saw that there was a small fire. The humans were speaking quietly to each other, but Hector didn't understand them. The humans nodded their heads in agreement, and chuckled. One of them picked up a light-enough branch, put one end of it over the fire, letting it burn that end as he held it with the other, and then threw it into a set of bushes.

Hector glanced around to see if the brambles were turning red, but they were not. The fire was already starting to spread to the nearby trees, though. It forced Hector to move from his hiding spot, but, a human took notice, and turned toward him. Hector panicked, seeing that the fire was now blocking him. The humans surrounded Hector, and one dropped a net on him, and then picked him up in it and tied it tightly, chuckling. Hector was terrified, but he knew this was all just a bad dream. It was not real. Soon, he would awaken in his nest.

There was a post with arms in the middle of the clearing, and a human tied the net to an arm tightly, tugging it to be sure. The humans laughed, and they sat down on the ground nearby, watching the fire spread farther. Hector was whimpering, waiting impatiently for someone to wake him up.

...

...

...

Maximus woke up in his nest in the dog barn. He looked at his puppies. Maximus gasped as he saw that Hector was missing. Maximus looked around, but all he could see and hear were sleeping dogs. Maximus got up, and took several minutes searching around the dog barn, and in the garden above it, but he did not find Hector.

Maximus went outside, and called out for Hector, but could not find him in the back or front yard. Maximus rushed back inside the dog barn, and prodded Daisy.

"Daisy?", Maximus prompted quietly, "Daisy, wake up. Wake up, now!"

Daisy slowly stirred, and blinked her eyes at Maximus. "What is it?", she quietly replied. "What's wrong, Max?"

Maximus took a moment to stare at his mate with a worried expression. "Hector's missing," Maximus stated.

Daisy opened her eyes wide with shock, and she was now feeling wide awake. She got up quickly.

"Go wake up Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker," Maximus prompted. "I'll head over to the horse barn."

Daisy rushed over to Deputy's nest, and Maximus raced out of the dog barn, and ran to the horse-place, calling desperately out for Hector.

When Maximus reached the barns, he called out loudly for Hector, waking the animals nearby.

"Hey, what's all the ruckus?", a cow stirred, irritated.

"Who's making all that noise?", a goat added.

"Hector! Hector!," Maximus yelled out. "He's missing! Where is he? Have any of you seen him?"

"We were all asleep," a pig snorted. "How could we have noticed?"

"Horses? Horses!", Maximus shouted, when he reached them. "As leader, I am calling this an emergency!"

"What's going on?", Starlight yawned.

"Hector! Hector is missing!", Maximus shouted. Maximus knew how to let the horses out, and released Champ. "Champ, come search with me!", Maximus commanded.

Champ nodded, and trotted out of the nearby barn door. Maximus quickly followed after asking the other horses if they had seen Hector. None of them had.

After several minutes of searching, Champ called out for Maximus, and Maximus quickly came.

"Look at this!", Champ exclaimed, pointing with his hoof at something on the ground.

Maximus looked down, and gasped with wide eyes in shock. It was at the entrance to the forest trails. Small paw-prints that showed sprinting were heading down the trail. "Oh, no...", Maximus stated quietly to himself in horror.

Maximus spun around and ran back to the dog barn. Deputy and Daisy were by the garden's back gate. Maximus called them over to him.

They joined Ranger and Tracker on the porch in front of the house.

Maximus had to catch his breath before he could speak. "Paw-prints," Maximus remarked. "I think Hector's in the woods."

"The woods?", Daisy panicked.

"He's not allowed in the woods...", Tracker remarked.

"Which can only mean one thing," Ranger added.

"He sleepwalked," Deputy added.

"We have to alert the humans," Maximus stated.

...

...

...

Very loud barking and howling dogs came running up the stairs and into the first bedroom. Mr. Anderson slowly stirred, and sat up on his bed. He was confused, because dogs almost never came upstairs. They were not really allowed to, and they knew that.

"What's going on?", Caleb yawned, as he stirred too.

"Yeah, what's wrong with the dogs?", Randy added, also yawning.

"Oh my goodness," Mandy remarked as she sat up.

Maximus, Daisy, Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker came running in making so much noise, as if they had to wake everyone in the building up.

Maximus focused his attention on Mr. Anderson. "What is it, alpha dog?", he asked.

"They're trying to tell us something," Caleb remarked.

"Only Hector can tell us what they're saying," Randy remarked, with a hint of amusement.

Mr. Anderson turned his lamp on.

Mandy walked over to the nearby window that faced towards the woods entrance. She moved the curtains out of the way to see it was totally dark outside. However, when she looked out into the distance, she yelped, "Oh my God!", in a panic, and spun around, and raced up another staircase to alert people upstairs. "What?", Mr. Anderson demanded as he got up from his bed.

Other workers were standing next to the window in shock, and then ran off following Mandy. Mr. Anderson hurried over to the window. He saw an eerie light in the distance. "Oh, no...", he exclaimed.

Mr. Anderson raced downstairs, ran into the kitchen, and picked up a phone, and dialed. "Hello? Hello?", he panicked. "Come on, come on, pick up the phone!", he demanded. When he heard an answer, he replied, "Fire! I think there's a fire in our forest! Please hurry!"

When Mr. Anderson was done with the phone, he raced back upstairs, got dressed in something else, and followed other workers who were outside, running towards the horse barn. Maximus, Daisy, and Deputy followed as well, but Ranger and Tracker went into the dog barn, to awaken the other dogs. Hugo and Nick flew out from a window, as if they understood, too.

At the horse barn, workers were quickly saddling the horses. Mr. Anderson told some of the workers to grab guns that were kept hidden inside the barns. Mr. Anderson found Champ outside, and saddled and mounted him, carrying a gun. He called for Maximus, Daisy, and Deputy, and they quickly followed him as they entered the woods. Behind, other armed workers on horses were following. Since there obviously was not enough horses for everyone, most of the workers stayed behind.

The riding group scattered, and so did the three dogs.

...

...

...

Hugo and Nick were flying very high over the forest as fast as they could. The smoke made it difficult to see. The fire was happening near the edge of the forest. They just barely spotted a small clearing, and thought that Hector must be there. They quickly flew down, trying to hold their breath.

When they reached the tops of the trees, the smoke was blinding them, and they felt the heat of the tall flames below them. They eventually reached the clearing, and spotted Hector in a net hanging from a post. Humans were circling around the clearing, in front of the fire, holding out thundersticks. Hoping the humans would not notice, they reached down to Hector.

"Hugo, Nick!", Hector exclaimed, and coughed. "I'm trapped!"

"We're getting you out of here," Hugo coughed.

The two parrots quickly perched on the post, and used their powerful beaks to cut through the already chewed bits of the net.

Just as enough was cut through, a human spun around and exclaimed, pointing his thunderstick at the parrots. The parrots quickly flew off before they could get struck. They decided to grab the attention of the humans and distract them long enough for Hector to escape.

Hector understood, and squeezed his body out of the net, and fell on the ground. He ran off towards the fire, and tried making a path through the flames. Hugo and Nick had vanished into the smoke to hide themselves, and flew back up very high until they could see well enough again. They couldn't tell where Hector was now.

...

...

...

Maximus, Daisy, Deputy, and the master on Champ passed by the waterfall, heading deeper and deeper into the huge forest. Now, Maximus and Daisy were searching the forest together. They told Deputy to go with the master who was riding Champ. The other humans were scattered. When Maximus and Daisy finally reached the fire, the high flames were spreading closer and closer to them. They continued through the maze of flames, trying to call out for Hector, but it was very difficult, as they were already starting to choke on the smoke.

...

...

...

Hector was choking on the smoke, and feeling the emitted heat of the flames, had difficulty making his way through the flames. He tried calling out for help, but he could not make his voice very loud. His paws were burning, and he was crying in pain at walking on the blood red ground. He spent what felt like forever dodging the flames. Hector still wanted to believe that this was just a bad dream, but this was more real and longer than other bad dreams he had had.

...

...

...

When Mr. Anderson reached the flames, Champ was more frightened than him, rearing up on his back legs. Deputy hurried off through the flames, and Mr. Anderson saw two other workers riding toward him.

"We must head this way," Mr. Anderson announced to them, pointing a direction. "We have to find the other end of the fire, along the road. It's too dangerous to enter the fire here. We'll inhale too much smoke."

The two other workers nodded in agreement, and followed Mr. Anderson as they rode towards the direction of the road that led to the farm. When they finally reached it, they followed the side of the fire from a safe enough distance, hoping they would see help coming their way, too.

...

...

...

Hector could hardly breathe. He kept trying to call out for help, but it was nearly impossible. Finally, Hector spotted another clearing, and quickly made his way in there. It was a wider space away from the flames. Hector stopped and desperately tried to catch his breath. After a moment, though, he saw two of those humans on the other side of the clearing. Hector was terrified, but wondered how they got there. Sniffing the air, he could just make out the scent of running water. There was a river close by. The humans suddenly spotted Hector, and walked toward him with giant-looking hands out to grab him. Hector froze in terror, nearly passing out from the choking. But after that long moment, Hector heard barking. Hector jumped up in response, and tried calling out to the dogs. The humans, hearing the barking too, paused, and looked around. One of the humans walked around looking for the dogs after they stopped barking, while the other continued towards Hector. The human snatched Hector up by the scruff of his neck and Hector cried out in pain as the human chuckled and made Hector's cuts hurt more.

Hector looked and saw two dogs dashing out from the flames, baring their teeth and growling viciously at the human who was now strangling Hector. The human whipped around towards the dogs in response, and barely a second after, the two dogs leaped up and bit as deep as they could into the arms of the human. Maximus was on one arm, Daisy on the other. His arms bleeding, and yowling in pain, the human dropped Hector on the ground. The other human took his large stick, pointed it toward Maximus and Daisy, and triggered very loud thunderous flashes of fire from the tip of it. Hector realized these were "thundersticks". It struck Maximus, and both dogs let go. Maximus whined as he fell to the ground, but both dogs quickly sprung up and dashed toward the river, Maximus quickly grabbing Hector in his jaws. The human holding the thunderstick fell down, but just as the three dogs reached the river, the thunderstick was triggered again, and as Maximus leaped into the river, holding Hector as tightly as he could, Daisy behind them got struck and fell into the river exclaiming and whining in response.

The river was rapidly moving, and the three dogs were carried away from the humans. The flames could not reach them in the water.

...

...

...

Mr. Anderson and the two other workers with him reached the end of the fire, at the edge of the forest, and two other workers were on the other side.

Two people appeared from the flames, both holding guns.

Mr. Anderson's eyes widened, but then turned into a furious expression as he took his gun, and pointed it toward them. "Don't move!", he shouted.

The other workers near him did the same with their guns.

The two people saw that they were outnumbered and paused.

"Drop the guns!", Mr. Anderson demanded furiously. "Now!"

The two people refused to do so, and pointed their guns at the workers. In a very quick response, Mr. Anderson and another worker shot the two people in the arm, and they went down on the ground yowling in pain. The horses made very frightened noises in response. "Calm down, Champ. It's alright," Mr. Anderson tried to calm his horse. The horses needed to rest. "We'll keep an eye on them," Mr. Anderson addressed the other workers. "If there are others out there, hopefully they have also been found."

...

...

...

Maximus, Hector, and Daisy reached a calmer spot in the river where they could stop on a shallower ground.

Maximus released Hector from his jaws. "Are you okay?", he prompted.

Hector coughed and nodded.

The water in the spot where they had stopped was now turning blood red. Hector looked at Daisy, and she was panting, lying down bleeding from her side.  
Hector looked at Maximus, and he was limping, bleeding from a back leg.

Hector crawled to Daisy. "Daisy?", Hector quietly said. "Daisy, get up."

Daisy did not respond.

"Mom...", Hector prompted. "We have to get out of here."

Daisy only panted more, unable to get statements out.

"Mom!", Hector prompted, starting to cry.

Maximus limped over, and held his paw over Daisy's wound.

After a minute, Hector and Maximus raised their head in response to someone approaching. Deputy was in the river, approaching them. Hugo and Nick were flying over him, landing in front of the three dogs. When Deputy reached them, he fretted. "Daisy! Maximus!"

"The intruders," Maximus tried to speak through coughing. "They had thundersticks."

"I know," Deputy remarked. "We have to get help right now."

"Where are the humans?", Maximus asked. "Where is the master?"

"The master could not enter the flames," Deputy explained. "I went off alone, and I encountered humans with thundersticks, probably the same ones you did."

"What did you do?", Hector asked.

"I knocked them down before they saw me," Deputy explained. "And bit them hard before I could get struck by their thundersticks. Then I leaped into the river to escape, just escaping a hit."

"We happened to be there at the moment, flying overhead, and followed Deputy down the river," Hugo remarked. Nick nodded.

Deputy took a moment to look at Daisy. "We gotta get her out of here, now!", Deputy exclaimed.

"Hugo, Nick," Maximus coughed. "Go alert the closest humans nearby. Lead them here."

Hugo and Nick nodded, but before they took off, something caught the attention of all of them. In the hot breeze from the fire, debris and leaves were carried around. Looking towards a boulder in the river, a figure faded in to appear. Hector's eyes widened. It was a beautiful wolf. It stared at the animals for a few long moments, and then, all of a sudden, thunder was heard from above, and rain started to fall from the dark clouds. No more than a minute after the wolf appeared, it disappeared into the wind's debris. Hector knew it was Father Noble.

Hector turned to look at the others, and they all gave him a look that said they all knew too.

Hugo and Nick took off.

...

...

...

Randy and two other workers paused their horses when rain began to fall.

Randy sighed in relief. "What were the odds of that happening?", he asked, half to himself.

After letting the horses rest for several minutes, Randy and the two other workers heard squawking, and spotted Hugo and Nick flying towards them. They landed on the ground.

"Where are the others?", Randy asked the parrots.

"Follow," Hugo and Nick mimicked to the humans.

"Let's follow them," Randy addressed the two others in response.

When Hugo and Nick slowly took off again, Randy and the two others followed them, until they reached a shallow part of the river, and spotted four dogs. It was Maximus, Daisy, Deputy, and Hector.

"Oh my God!", Randy panicked, looking at them, and jumped off his horse, and ran over to them.

Randy knelt down and took a brief look at a wound on Maximus's leg, and then placed his hands on Daisy's wound. "Oh, Daisy...", he sighed in sadness. "Oh, no..."

The two other workers reached them, and knelt down next to Daisy. "Is she gonna be okay?", one of them asked.

"We have to get them to the vet right away," Randy prompted. "Let's move! Now!"

Randy picked up Daisy as carefully as possible, positioning her to be sure that her wound would not bleed more on the way back. Another worker picked up Maximus, being careful with his injured leg. The other worker picked up Deputy in one arm and Hector in the other. The workers got back on their horses, and raced off back to the farm.

...

...

...

Mr. Anderson and the other workers around him heard speeding police cars approaching on the road. They quickly parked, and policemen came out and arrested the two people, and others went to search for others.

Mr. Anderson dismounted Champ, and walked over to one of the policemen. "Where could these people have possibly come from?", Mr. Anderson asked.

The policeman sighed.

"Our home is so...far away...," Mr. Anderson stammered.

"We've seen these criminals before," the policeman replied. "They illegally hunted near the closest towns from here, but escaped their previous area before we could find them."

"They must have been sheltering in our private forest," Mr. Anderson remarked. "For...I don't know how long..."

"We're sorry we took a long time getting here," the policeman stated. "This is a very remote place."

"I know," Mr. Anderson sighed. "But at least it's raining. I don't know how it happened, but thank God it did."

...

...

...

Hector, Maximus, and Daisy were laying in a kennel with blankets together. A vet was patting Daisy's wound with white cloths. Maximus's leg was wrapped up. Hector's cuts were stitched and bandaged, and his paws were treated for burns. The night was very long. Maximus and Hector could not sleep regardless of their exhaustion. They watched the vets help Daisy, who could not speak, laying beside her, hoping and praying that she would be okay. But not too long after sunrise, Daisy was gone.

It was a long trip back to the farm. Inside the monster, Daisy was wrapped in a blanket. Maximus laid his head on top of her, grief-stricken. Hector laid down, his head in his paws, faced away from them, sobbing. He didn't want to look at either of them on the way back.

When the monster arrived back at the farm, and went to sleep, the humans inside sounded astonished at what they were looking at. The stomach of the monster was opened, and when Hector and Maximus stepped out, side by side, and walked to the front of the monster, they paused and sat down.

All the dogs had left the dog barn and were now standing in front of them, looking at them. Deputy and the four feral cats were in front. All of them then looked at something else. A worker human picked up Daisy, and handed her to the master, who began to cry and nuzzle her. Everyone bowed their heads down, and began to sob, in understanding. Hector and Maximus spent the entire day in a kennel, but neither said anything to one another. No one came in to talk to them. They just slept dreamlessly until sunset.

At sunset, a human came inside and let Hector and Maximus out of the kennel. Outside, Hector saw that all the worker humans and animals of the farm were lined up in front of the forest trails entrance. The rescued dogs were on leads. Some of the humans were mounting the horses, carrying dogs that looked as though they couldn't walk very well. Every single human and animal on the farm was ready to go. The humans who were walking were holding up small flames on sticks to light the way. The master held Daisy in his arms and led everyone through the woods riding Champ.

Eventually, they reached the place near the waterfall where the deceased were buried. It was a long, silent hike, only a few statements coming from the master and a few other humans, and murmurs coming from a few animals. The waterfall could be heard in the distance, and the trees visible from the top of the hill were unscathed, as if the sacred area was protected from the fire. The sky above was starry, and the moon was bright, but there were a few thin clouds. There was a small hill in the middle of the maze of gray stones that stuck out of the ground that had none on it. Humans were throwing sticks and stones in the center, and made a fire. In front of the hill, there was a beautiful table-like structure, and Daisy was placed on top of it.

The master was reading something from a book in his hand, and loud enough for everyone to hear, the other humans saying statements back. Debris and leaves swirled all around in the breeze, and all the animals bowed their heads respectfully. A blue light appeared from the sky, and shone down on the hill and Daisy. The humans did not seem to take any notice of that, but all the animals saw it and watched it. Maximus stood in front of Daisy, and announced to all the animals.

"She will live with Father Noble now," Maximus announced, "and our beloved ancestors."

"Daisy. May the leader rest in peace," all the animals said in unison in response.

"She will join them in watching over all of us, and everything we do," Maximus continued.

"Her spirit will guide us," the animals responded.

"She will forever be in my heart."

"She will always be remembered, and live on in our hearts."

"May her soul rise up to the heavens," Maximus finished, turning towards the sky. Maximus howled as loud as he could.

All the other dogs joined in. In the blue light that was only visible to the animals, an even lighter white sparkle shined through it, as if it was emitted from the fire, because the fire temporarily went higher, and then back down, and then, the whole light ascended into the sky. The stars in the sky seemed to twinkle brighter in that moment, and a shooting star shot across the sky.

All the humans and animals settled in the grass, and stared at Daisy and the fire in silence. Everyone sat together in a vigil that night. Nobody fell asleep. The wind, with the debris and leaves, stayed all night too. When the light from the sun finally beautifully appeared over the horizon, and the moon and stars were starting to disappear, Maximus, Deputy, Ranger, and Tracker helped the humans dig a deep hole in an open spot in the maze of gray stones. By the time they finished, the sun was visible. The master hugged and nuzzled Daisy one last time, announced something to all the other humans, and then gently placed her wrapped in her blanket in a beautiful wooden box that had cushions inside. The master closed it, locked it, and set it down inside the dug up hole. Humans took their sticks that had an odd thing at one end that picked up soil, and picked up the soil that was dug up, and buried Daisy. Other humans put the fire out. A new similarly-shaped stone was planted over the spot, and Hector could read the name "Daisy" on it. Humans took turns placing flowers next to it, and animals did the same. Maximus found three large daisy flowers, and placed them on top of the stone. When the funeral was over, the master mounted back on Champ, and led everyone back to the farm.


	26. Censure And Descent

As everyone headed back to the farm, Hector kept himself in the far back, as several dogs walked passed him, and gave him intimidating looks. Not even Chloe walked next to him. When the farm was finally reached, Hector watched the humans guide the horses back into their barn, and he slowly followed the other dogs, who were way ahead of him, back to the dog barn. As the last of the dogs were heading inside of the dog barn, Hector spotted Maximus entering the house instead. When Hector entered the dog barn, he paused in front of the entrance to see all of the dogs gathered around talking in discussion. Ethan was addressing everyone. He paused, and turned to look towards Hector, and gave him an angered stare. After a moment, everyone stopped talking, and turned to look at Hector the same way.

Hector looked around anxiously at the furious expressions, some of the dogs growling. After a long moment that felt like forever, Ethan spoke.

"You!", Ethan yelled furiously. "It's your fault! It's all your fault! You did this!"

In response, all of the other dogs joined in, and very loud furious barking sounded all across the dog barn.

"It IS your fault!"

"You brought the misfortune to us!"

"You were a bad omen from the start!"

"We should've just drowned you!"

"You're a disgrace to the farm!"

"You were ALWAYS a disgrace to the farm!"

"You don't belong in this sacred place!"

"You never belonged here!"

"You will never belong here!"

"Get out of here!"

The dogs started racing towards Hector.

"Get out of here!"

"This place ain't for lapdogs!"

"Leave!"

"Out!"

"You don't belong here!"

"Get outta here you useless runt!"

"Go find someone else's life to ruin!"

"Go!"

"Get out!"

Before the dogs could reach him, Hector spun around and ran outside. The dogs still furiously chased him, snapping their jaws, and they chased him off into the woods, and paused, barking furiously at him, as Hector sped away, not stopping until he could no longer hear the barking. He laid down, put his paws over his face, and wept.

After a minute, Hector felt Hugo and Nick land in front of him. Hector paused and looked at the two parrots.

"It is all my fault, isn't it?", Hector wept.

Hugo and Nick just sighed and looked at each other, and took a moment of silence before they spoke. They did not speak in an angered voice, but a calm voice that showed a hint of disapproval and concern at the same time.

"There's something you should know, Hector," Nick stated.

"What?", Hector asked.

"Mary and Ethan wanted to drown you when you were born," Nick continued.

"I know," Hector responded, "I heard it all talked about during that birth ceremony. Maximus and Daisy confirmed that that dream was true."

"We know," Hugo responded. "But there's something else then that they refused to tell you."

"What's that?", Hector replied.

After another moment of silence, Hugo reluctantly explained. "Mary and Ethan thought that you were a bad omen."

Hector just gave a worried and shocked expression.

"They were not going to tell their suspicions to the ancestors, right in front of them during that ceremony," Nick added. "You never do that to an ancestor!"

"But," Hugo continued, "the way you were born, several dogs, in fact, not just Mary and Ethan, thought that the ancestors were delivering us a terrible omen for something awful to happen on the farm, through you."

Hector still replied nothing, keeping the expression.

"That was really why Mary and Ethan wanted to kill you," Nick added. "And now, especially by the way you have had all of these dreams, and a prophecy, Maximus and Daisy weren't going to tell you that."

"Some animals thought that by keeping you alive," Hugo continued, "they would be inviting in a horrible occurrence to come."

"By killing you," Nick added, "the thing that would bring a misfortune, would be destroyed, and this misfortune would never have happened."

"You two do blame me, too, then, don't you?", Hector wept.

Hugo and Nick gave an expression that had a hint of concern, but looked more stern.

"Maximus and Daisy did not want to believe in me being a bad omen," Hector continued, "because they refused the killing of anybody. But inside, they were fearful of me from the beginning, too, weren't they?"

Hugo and Nick still did not respond, their expressions the same. Their eyes twitched, as if they were going to say yes or no, but neither answers were really implied.

"I knew it," Hector responded. "Nobody wants me here."

"You don't belong here," Nick stated.

"You need to find somewhere else to live," Hugo added.

"Somewhere else?", Hector wept. "But where?"

Hugo and Nick did not respond. They just gave Hector disapproving expressions, shook their heads, and flew away.

After being lost in his thoughts for a while, Hector eventually fell asleep. He had a strange dream that did not seem very long. He was climbing up mysterious vines and roots, and when he reached the top, it turned out to have been a daisy flower. When Hector woke up, he knew it represented Daisy. When Hector briefly remembered Maximus's anecdote from a while ago, he realized it wasn't the first time that Daisy had been represented through a daisy flower. Whether this dream had any real significance or not, Hector did not know.

As Hector headed back to the dog barn, he realized it was almost sundown. When the dog barn came into view, he saw several dogs scattered around, and he felt nervous to go out in the open, but he had to find Chloe. He knew Chloe would not have been in that angry mob. When Hector was in the middle of the dirt-place, all the dogs around him turned towards him and began growling. Hector picked up speed, and raced towards the horse-place, being pelted by the same expressions on the way by other animals.

When Hector was at the fence to the paddock, he tried talking to Bear, who was sitting on top of it, but Bear did not listen. Bear just hissed and snarled at him, and gave him a threatening swipe of his paw with unsheathed claws. Hector went into the horse barn, and called for Chloe. As he searched around the barn, the animals in the pens and stalls next to him were yelling at him like the angry dog mob in the morning. Hector ignored them, and kept searching for Chloe.

When Hector got to the other side of the barn, there were a few humans getting feed for the horses. Ethan and two other dogs furiously leaped out in front of Hector from blind intersections, and Hector, in response, quickly jumped and backed away, gasping.

"YOU! You LAPDOG!", Ethan screamed furiously, and lunged toward Hector, followed by the other two dogs. Hector spun around and started running away. The humans responded, and ran over to the dogs and quickly grabbed them before they could bite Hector. Hector kept running, but then another two dogs came storming towards him, and Hector froze, looked to his side, and quickly scrambled up the stacks of hay next to him, and leaped out of a small hole in the wall, hearing humans yelling at the dogs behind him.

When Hector fell to the ground, two pigs came storming towards him, and a horse next to him raised up on his hind legs and made an angry noise as he started to run away, quickly leaping out of the way of the landing hooves, and continuing to speed away from the angry pigs. When the pigs had caught up to him, Hector jumped up onto their backs and ran the other way, only to be halted again by the same horse, who tried to slam his head against him. Hector kept running until he reached the fence, and quickly scrambled under, hearing humans yelling behind him as animals chased him to it. Hector ran past the play-place, which certainly was unoccupied at the moment, and headed into the garden. He began calling for Chloe again, desperately, and he heard Chloe whispering for him from behind some flowers, and Hector quickly followed her, until they were both hiding behind the cascade rocks.

"Everybody is trying to attack me!", Hector exclaimed, trying not to be loud enough for someone else to hear.

"Hector...", Chloe hesitated.

"You blame me too, don't you?", Hector prompted. "For Mom's death?"

"No...I don't," Chloe responded.

"But what am I going to do?", Hector fretted. "Everybody hates me! Not that they hadn't before..."

"I don't know," Chloe sighed.

"LAPDOG!", Hector and Chloe heard Bandit's furious voice from above, and he hissed. Bandit was in the oak tree next to the garden, and Hector and Chloe ran off as he leaped down with unsheathed claws. When they got outside the garden, there were too many angry dogs gathered around, growling.

There were some humans at the house's porch, who suddenly got up, and noticed the situation.

One of the dogs was Mary. "You tell us, Hector!", she snarled. "Who is responsible for Daisy's death?"

Hector hesitated, shaking fearfully.

"You're guilty!", another dog added.

"If it weren't for you none of this would have happened!", Mary continued.

"You caused this!", another dog added.

Some of the dogs started hurling towards Hector, baring their teeth. Hector, frozen in fear, ducked down.

Chloe jumped on top of Hector, and protested. "It's not his fault! You're all crazy! Those bad humans could have came anytime!"

"He IS responsible!", a dog snarled.

"I knew he was a bad omen!", another dog added.

The humans at the porch sprang towards the angry dogs, and one ran inside the house hollering. The dogs around Hector tried hitting Chloe off of Hector, but the humans caught up, and grabbed the dogs and pulled them away from Hector. More dogs came hurling towards them, and more humans stormed out of the nearby house, yelling, and they tried to restrain the other dogs. The master was the last to come out, and he hurried towards Hector and Chloe.

Ethan stormed out from behind, the entrance to the farm behind them, and shoved Chloe off of Hector, and pinned Hector to the ground onto his back with one paw, but before Ethan could bite Hector's face, the master swooped down and took Ethan's bite to his hand instead. The master yelped and jerked his hand back as it began to bleed. Ethan immediately stopped, and backed away, looking at the master with a blank expression. The master interrogated the nearby humans, who were holding the angry dogs back, and then picked up Hector with his other hand. The master addressed the other humans, and carried Hector into the house, Chloe following.

The master put Hector in the living room, and went into the kitchen to wrap up his hand. Hector had no idea where Maximus was, but Chloe sat in front of Hector. Hector just gave her a desperate stare. Chloe was silent, with a concerned expression, as if she did not know what to say.

A human came into the room, and placed a small cage onto the ground, and walked towards the master.

"Oh, no," Hector responded. "The humans blame me too, I think."

Hugo and Nick flew into the room, and gave Hector a disapproving expression.

"Hugo, Nick," Hector fretted. "What is going on? What are they gonna do with me?"

The two parrots did not answer.

"Where is Maximus?", Hector prompted. The birds still did not speak.

The master came back into the room, with a wrapped up hand. He looked down at Hector, and spoke in a calm voice to him, and mentioned Chloe's name, and headed outside.

Hector looked back at Chloe, and she gave him an expression of worry and shock.

"I don't belong here," Hector stated. "Do I?"

Chloe replied nothing. For a few moments that felt much longer, Chloe was silent, with the same expression. Hector shared her expression.

Chloe leaned in towards Hector, and picked up his paw with her paw. Hector's expression changed to almost dumbfounded, and after a moment, Chloe put her lips on Hector's, and they shared a kiss. Hector kept a worried and shocked expression, as Chloe held both of Hector's paws.

"I love you, Hector," Chloe stated.

"I love you, too, Chloe," Hector replied.

They kissed again, and then hearing the other human coming back into the room, they quickly backed away from each other. The human picked up Hector, put him in the cage, and carried him outside. Hector was worried, and was not allowed to see the very noisy and loud commotion going on around. The human took him into the kennel room he had been placed in before and, leaving him in the smaller cage, locked him inside a kennel. The smaller cage, which had only one opening, and only tiny holes on the sides, was placed in the corner of the wall of the last kennel, so Hector could hardly see anything. Not much longer after, Hector heard Ethan and Mary, and his littermates, being placed in the kennel on the far opposite side of the room. After being locked in, the humans who brought them once again locked the door to the room as well, leaving the lights on inside. The dogs knew Hector was inside, too, and Hector just listened to their arguing and raving without responding, and was actually relieved that they could not see him. However, they were all locked inside the kennels for the rest of the afternoon, and much of the night, having no contact from the other animals or humans outside. Hector desperately wanted to speak to Maximus, Sebastian, and Charlotte, but they never came, and the worst part of that was that Hector did not know why. Were they also blaming Hector for Daisy's death, were they unwilling to mention it to him, or were the humans just not letting anybody inside, because Hector knew that none of them had yelled at him earlier? Since the other dogs inside could not be company, this was solitary confinement for Hector. Mary and Ethan just talked to Hector's littermates, and they told them about what exists outside of the farm. They also sang to pass the time. Hector was silent the whole time, and just listened, as he lay down on his back, his head against the back of his cage, in depression.

...

...

...

Eventually, it was a few hours before dawn, and Mr. Anderson, Caleb, Randy, and Mandy went inside the kennel room, and shared concerned expressions with each other. The dogs looked toward them with curiosity.

"Are you really sure about this?", Mandy asked Mr. Anderson.

"That runt has got to go," Mr. Anderson stated sternly.

"But he can communicate with us, in such a way...", Caleb argued.

"Are you sure you want to give him up?", Randy added.

"Yes," Mr. Anderson responded. "He's obviously the cause of this sudden aggression with all of the animals. They obviously do not want him here. It is for the good of not only everyone here, but for him, too."

"You never shared his unique talent, with anyone, did you?", Randy asked Mr. Anderson.

"No," Mr. Anderson replied. "I think it would freak out people more than it would interest them."

"I'm sorry," Mandy replied, shaking her head. "We don't agree. We think it's fascinating."

"Fine," Mr. Anderson shouted sternly. "Then he should have no trouble finding a home, then, should he?"

Mandy, Randy, and Caleb just looked at Mr. Anderson with shocked and concerned expressions.

"Well, then, why do we have to give up his littermates, too?", Randy asked. "We just get rid of him, it'll already fix the problem, right?"

"Well," Mr. Anderson sighed, "we need the additional money to help replace and rebuild what we lost in the fire. And Ginger and Zoey have not even had their puppies yet, and the younger the pups, the more likely they will be sold. And we can't sell our alphas', Maximus's and Daisy's, litter, especially if we can sell Ethan's and Mary's litter instead, so, we don't really have a choice, guys."

Caleb sighed. "Well, then, let's hope Ethan and Mary had given their goodbyes by now to their puppies."

"Our dogs know the drill, don't they?", Randy added.

"They should," Mr. Anderson sighed. "It's not the first time we did this."

Mandy grabbed two cages just outside the door, a little bigger but the same type as Hector's, and passed one to Caleb, as Randy unlocked and opened the kennel keeping Ethan and Mary and their litter. Mr. Anderson just watched with an upset expression, leaning his back against the kennel on the opposite row.

The workers sat down, placing the cages down with the openings rearing up on their legs. One by one, they picked up each puppy, some of them looking quite nervous, and placed them in the cages and locked them inside, as Mary and Ethan showed upset expressions and whined.

As Randy and Caleb picked up the two cages and carried them outside, Mr. Anderson knelt down in front of Mary and Ethan, keeping his upset expression. "Go grab the last one," Mr. Anderson told Mandy, turning to look towards Hector's smaller cage and back at Ethan and Mary.

Ethan leaned closer, and sniffed Mr. Anderson's bitten hand, and gave him a blank expression. Mary leaned closer with the same blank expression. Mr. Anderson stroked Ethan. "You would never bite me, Ethan," Mr. Anderson spoke quietly. "It's not your fault." Mr. Anderson stopped, and looked towards Mary, and stroked her head and ears with both of his hands. Mr. Anderson also spoke quietly to her, but more firmly this time. "Mary, why did you do this? Why did you give us this puppy? WHY did you reject it? What did you know already about him? What DO you?" Mr. Anderson stared at Mary for a few moments, and took a glance at Ethan, as if he almost expected them to do something similar to what Hector did to communicate, but he just let go of Mary, sighed, got up, and followed Mandy outside.

Mary and Ethan ran out of the kennel room and hurried towards the dog barn. Mandy and Mr. Anderson walked side by side, Mandy carrying Hector's cage, heading towards the parking lot.

Mandy spoke very quietly, almost mouthing, as if she had expected Hector to understand her words. "Mr. Anderson, HE did not get to say goodbye to HIM or anybody."

"You mean his surrogate father?", Mr. Anderson replied, in a louder tone. "It's not worth taking the risk, Mandy. Every animal here has been driven mad because of him."

"But HE would not hurt him!", Mandy argued.

"I can't imagine he would hurt anybody," Mr. Anderson agreed. "But...", he sighed. He went silent for a few moments, and only spoke again when they reached the parking lot. "We gotta get going. By the time we get there, workers will be there, and we want to get there before it opens. Besides, I don't even know where that dog is."

"Me neither, but...", Mandy responded, but broke off at the sound of the start of the car they were leaving in. The cages were being placed in the back of the car, where there were no seats. There was just a place to set the cages where the windows would be visible to the dogs. There were two seats in the middle, where Mandy and Caleb sat. Randy sat shotgun with Mr. Anderson driving. They turned their lights on, pulled out, and took off down the little road going through the farm, and exited the farm.

...

...

...

Hector lay in his cage, and watched outside of the monster, and it started to run away from the farm. He saw the entrance, and its sign, with the markings he could glance at for only a brief moment, that appeared to say "beg and have an", sort of. As the monster sped up away, Hector could then only see the forest that surrounded the farm, and it began to rain as thunder was heard from the dark sky above. Hector's littermates in the two other cages next to him were speaking with worried and protesting murmurs as they watched the same thing. "Where are they taking us?", Hector said to himself. He thought for a minute that they were being taken to the vet again, but, why would they go now? Hector was just at the vet. Hector started to whimper as he thought about his grandparents and Maximus. He had not gotten to see them since Daisy's funeral. Hector hoped that wherever they were going, they would be back at the farm soon. But then, Hector remembered a little that Mary and Ethan had told his littermates, about the world outside of the farm. Were they leaving forever? No, it could not be! But Hector knew that nearly everyone did not want him there anymore, but his littermates were with him, and they could have stayed, but then, why did Mary and Ethan tell them about that stuff? Hector then panicked. If he was really being taken away, away from the farm, forever, then he never even got to say goodbye to Maximus, Sebastian, or Charlotte, and he would never see Chloe again, either! Hector felt tears coming down his face at the thought of never seeing them again. As he watched the rain fall heavier then, and spotted burned spots of the forest, he began to sob, digging his head into his paws. " _No._ _This can't be_ ," he thought.

The trip seemed endless, it went on for so long, through the rest of the night, but as the sun was rising, when the monster seemed to have finally stopped and quickly fell asleep, Hector saw a yellow-colored house with several windows, surrounded by trees, and it had a long fence next to it, and a stone path leading up to it. There was also a sign near it that Hector could clearly read. It had two paw-prints on it and a long bone shape on the bottom. It said "DOG ADOPTION CENTER".


	27. The Start Of A New Life

"Where are we?", Hector stated, half to himself.

"You better know, Runt," Buster responded angrily, banging the cage he was in hard enough to make it shake Hector's. "You got us into this!"

Hector didn't respond as the noise of the humans dismounting the monster sounded from behind them.

"There's something marked over there," Layla remarked, taking notice of the sign.

"Yeah, why not use your stupid hobby to tell us what it says," Audrey added, with a blank tone. "Do something useful for once."

"It...it says 'dog adoption center'...", Hector stated with uncertainty.

"Should we be nervous?", Layla asked.

Before anyone responded, two humans came and grabbed the two cages, and headed towards the house. More humans that Hector did not recognize were there talking to the master. Hector was not bothering to listen close enough to understand what they were saying. He was feeling too nervous and upset. But they were greeting tones. They all entered into the house, and the voices from the unfamiliar humans turned excited.

Inside, Hector could hear a few other young dogs yapping. The cages were set inside what appeared to be a somewhat large pen. One of the farm worker humans opened both the cages, and stepped back over the shortly-heightened pen. Hector's littermates poured out of the cage, and glanced around, sniffing the air, as the unfamiliar humans reacted in that demeaning-sounding voice.

...

"Oh my gosh, they're adorable!", a center worker lady exclaimed in response. "Hi, guys," she greeted as she held her hand out over the short pen wall, gesturing at the puppies to come over.

"This is the first time you've seen our puppies, right?", Mr. Anderson asked her.

"Yeah," she chuckled. One of the puppies came up to her and sniffed her hand. She stroked his head, and, he and the other puppies behind him beginning to act hyper, he went up to her and tried licking her face, softly yipping excitedly. "Hi there, boy!", she smiled. "He's the biggest one, isn't he?", she asked Mr. Anderson.

"Yes, we named him Buster," Mr. Anderson replied, chuckling. "He's quite strong for a puppy."

"But so cute, too," the lady remarked.

"Our dogs are the highest quality purebreds," Mr. Anderson stated in a proud voice. "I wonder if in the entire country, too, though."

The center workers were stroking all the excited hyper puppies.

"But, then we had this little...thing," Mr. Anderson's voice turned more apprehensive.

"What?", one of the center workers asked.

"Hector," Mr. Anderson responded.

"Which one is that?", a center worker asked.

Mr. Anderson pointed out all the puppies. "That's Buster, Owen, Gavin, Audrey, and Layla."

"Hector's still in his cage," Randy remarked.

"He must feel very depressed, Mr. Anderson," another center worker lady responded.

"Well, he'll come out when he's ready," Mr. Anderson replied. "He was born a runt, so he's the smallest of the litter."

"I'm so sorry about what happened, Mr. Anderson," she continued.

Mr. Anderson sighed. "Well, there's just too much about Hector than I think even we should try to handle."

"Like what?", a center worker man asked.

"Oh...", Mr. Anderson replied with uncertainty, and took a look at Randy, Mandy, and Caleb, who shared his expression, before finishing his sentence, "You'll find out soon enough, I think."

Randy added. "Well, one thing you should know is that Hector has very poor eyesight. He was born blind, and by the way he was born, I'm sure his eyesight will never get better."

"Is that the only thing we need to worry about?", the center worker man asked.

"No," Mandy responded. "But we hope you guys can find a home for him. We cannot take him back."

"We'll have customers in no time," a center worker responded.

...

Hector was just laying in the back of his cage, listening to his littermates greet the unfamiliar humans, apparently interested in exploring the house regardless of their apprehension. Hector heard the humans speaking, but didn't pay much attention. He finally decided to leave his cage to look around.

...

"Oh, there he is!", a center worker remarked, seeing Hector step out of his cage slowly.

"Awww," the new center worker lady responded. "Come here, Hector."

...

" _Come here_?", Hector responded. He just looked at the unfamiliar humans with an uncertain expression. The female human asked him and gestured him again to come over. Hector just stayed where he was.

...

"He doesn't seem nearly as interested to greet us," the new center worker lady responded.

"Is he completely white?", a center worker man asked, with a confused expression. "Is he a lemon?"

"One of his birth defects, probably," Caleb sighed. "Among others."

"You wouldn't want to try breeding him?", the center worker man asked. "Have you ever gotten a full white beagle?"

"Extremely rarely, but," Mr. Anderson sighed. "He doesn't need to pass on defects to another generation. Hector was pretty much a stillborn. He was dying quickly after being born. We never had such a defective puppy. We have had no more than four or five stillborns over the many decades we have owned the property. If it wasn't for our female alpha, Daisy, who happened to give birth right after Mary, I would have just...you know...", he sighed.

"You couldn't just try feeding it yourself?, a center worker asked.

"It's been so long since...," Mr. Anderson sighed. "There was no possible way we would get it in time to save it. And Mary was acting so aggressively..."

"But he pulled through somehow," Mandy remarked. "There just were several things that we just knew would cause him to behave strangely."

"How strange?", a center worker prompted.

"We really ought to be off," Mr. Anderson stated, clearly not wanting to speak any more about Hector. "Our puppies are always very expensive, but we need plenty of money right now. So, be sure to send us the money the moment they get adopted."

"What do you think, guys?", a center worker asked, chuckling. "Think these cuties will go fast?"

The other center workers nodded in response, smiling.

"Well, good luck," Mr. Anderson stated. "But, can we have a moment alone with the puppies?"

"Yeah, we'll start writing them down," a center worker man gestured to the others as they walked out of the room, and to the front desk.

...

Hector was listening, and understood a little of what the humans were saying. He could pick up the terms that meant, "born", "puppy", and of course, the names, so he knew the conversation was about him. The unfamiliar humans were leaving the room, and the master knelt down in front of the pen, and gestured for Hector to come. Hector slowly walked over, and the master stroked his head and ears, using both of his hands, and spoke to him softly.

Hector could understand the master saying statements that meant, "Hector...please try...humans...home...why...born like this...reason...talents...skills...music...reading...communicating...act like...I'm sorry, Hector. I'm so sorry. But good luck with what the future holds for you."

Hector and the master shared a concerned expression with each other, and after a moment of staring into each other's eyes, the master slowly smiled, and bent down and kissed Hector's head, Hector licking the master's face a couple times in response.

As the master slowly got up, and told the other farm worker humans to come, Hector just noticed that the others were talking to his littermates. The humans walked out of the room, taking a glance back at the puppies, as they stood on two legs, looking back at them over the wall of the pen, and then leaving.

Several moments of silence went by.

"Is the master coming back?", Gavin asked.

"If what Mary and Ethan said is true, then he's never coming back," Owen answered.

The puppies laid down on the floor.

"We will be living with a human family, each of our own," Layla remarked.

"We'll each be picked out by a different human pup," Audrey added.

"And we will each have a NEW master," Owen added.

"I guess I'll never mate with Chloe, then," Buster sighed with disappointment.

"Who cares, Buster?", Audrey responded, shaking her head.

"Yeah," Layla agreed. "You know as well as we do that you would never have a chance with her."

"It's Runt's fault," Buster retorted. "Everything is Runt's fault!", he continued, louder, giving an angry glare at Hector.

Hector was still feeling upset, but he gave Buster a stern glare in response. "I'm never gonna see her again, either, Buster. That should make you feel better."

"I guess it could...", Buster sighed. "But who would want to leave a paradise like the farm?", he exclaimed.

None of the other puppies replied, as if they all were in thought about what their new life would be like.

"I think I can imagine what this new life will be like," Buster continued in a stern voice. "Nothing like the farm. Humans will treat you differently. You have to sleep in a human-styled nest, instead of a comfortable barn. You will be forced to eat whatever they give you. You can only make dirt both when and where they let you do so. You have to be very quiet. You have to stay inside the house when it rains. You are given baths. You cannot chew or mark just any objects you please. You have to obey far too many rules! There will be more house and human-place than adventurous forests and hikes, and so dangerous monsters everywhere on top of that! And, there will be NO PACK! There are no alpha animals, and either you are the ONLY animal in the household, or the ONLY dog, so you won't have an enormous amount of other animals to talk to and sleep next to at all times! Probably no horses or other farm animals to play with. Instead, it is just taking ALL orders from humans! Whatever the humans decide, is what goes, no matter what!"

The other puppies were just looking at Buster with expressions that meant they were half-shocked about how long Buster had spoke and how detailed he was about what he was thinking, and half-uncertain about how they'll feel about how different their lives will be having a human family instead of living in a pack far from human civilization. Hector shared the same expression, but he had doubt in his eyes.

"What?", Buster asked everyone. "Doesn't that sound about right? What kind of life is that? On the farm, it is the absolute opposite of all that! It's total bliss, total dignity, and absolutely total FREEDOM! Humans make no real rules on the farm. The alpha dogs decide on them. The animals control their own destiny!"

A moment of silence went by as the puppies glanced around without moving their heads, in thought.

"Yeah, but, Buster," Hector replied, keeping his expression. "Isn't it possible for the farm to be TOO MUCH paradise?"

"What do you mean, Runt?", Buster responded in a blank tone.

"I mean," Hector replied, "There are plenty of things, I'm sure, that you wouldn't get to experience living on the farm."

"Sure," Buster humphed. "But probably nothing nearly as interesting as living in total freedom."

"But if this new type of life wasn't a positive life," Hector argued, "then the master wouldn't give up any of his dogs."

"Well, he would still give YOU up anyway, Runt," Buster argued, in a half-teasing, half-blank tone.

The other puppies giggled in response. "That's definitely true," Gavin agreed.

Hector, angry, stood up and protested. "I'm sure the master was trying to do what was best for me! Probably I was the only one brought here with a reason to change my life for the better!"

The other puppies just looked at each other with half-amused, half-blank expressions.

Buster spoke after a few moments of silence. "Well, good luck interesting ANY human pup that comes in," he humphed to Hector. "A human pup goes to adopt a dog so that he or she has someone to play ball and have fun with, not to stare at and study a boring image with," he continued, "especially not if they already have other humans to do that with them when they are FORCED to," he added by murmuring.

The other puppies giggled again in response. Hector just kept looking at them angrily, trying to hold back that he still felt much grief. They stopped giggling when they heard humans coming back in, the same unfamiliar humans who apparently work at the dog adoption center.

They picked up all of the puppies, and carried them outside. The yapping of nearby dogs sounded around, and Hector saw the dogs locked inside kennels outside. All of them were young, but were all different races, in different sizes, different colors, and different barks.

The humans placed Hector and his littermates all in one empty kennel, and locked them inside. As the humans walked away, Hector's littermates were greeted by the other nearby pups, even though they couldn't see them.

Hector settled in a back corner away from them. After a few moments, Hector widened his eyes as he just realized something familiar about the kennel. Looking around, it was the same kennel from a dream he had a while back! The only difference was that he was not alone, because his littermates were inside it with him, and other pups were in the adjacent kennels. Remembering the dream made Hector feel uncomfortable, but he was not for sure why.

The humans came back several minutes later, placing water and food inside of the kennel, and hanging papers on it, which was facing outwards so Hector could not read what they said. After they left again, Hector's littermates chowed down on the food, hungry, but Hector stayed in the corner, not wanting to eat with them. When they had finished, Hector wondered if they had actually left any food for him, but not wanting to risk more humiliation, Hector stayed where he was.

Hector just listened to the chatting of the nearby pups, and the rest of the morning went by, but eventually he heard the sound of a monster falling asleep nearby, and supposedly human pups squealing with excitement, and the other pups around him, also taking notice, started yapping excitedly. Hector just sat up, and waited for something to happen.

After several minutes, a little door on the back of the kennel slid open, and Hector's littermates ran out excitedly. Hector came out more slowly, and saw some other pups being let out of the kennels by the humans.

Coming through a gate in the fence next to the house were two small humans, one a male, and one a female. They were human pups, and as the other dogs around him sprang towards them, and started goofing around, Hector saw how the human pups liked to play around as excitedly as the dogs. They spoke in higher-pitched voices, and two other adult humans who Hector didn't see before Hector assumed were their parents.

The human pups soon started throwing sticks and balls, and the dogs started playing fetch. Hector saw how many dogs were participating, but as he just watched, it didn't take long for it to get boring for him to watch. Other dogs were chasing their tails, and others were laying on their backs to ask for belly rubs.

After a while, the worker humans put some of the dogs back into the kennels, the ones that the human pups weren't playing with much, and let out other dogs for them. Eventually, the two human pups each picked out a dog to adopt, neither of which were Hector's littermates, but Hector's littermates still looked excited and anticipated about the next family to come, because they found it so much fun to play with human pups, possibly even more than with adult humans. Hector did not feel much interest at all in their games, feeling they were much too repetitive and non-creative.

Two more families with one human pup each had come along and adopted a dog from an adjacent kennel. When night had finally fallen, Hector had finally gotten to eat, since his littermates weren't as hungry as they were before. His littermates all slept beside each other, in a few cloths, finding it a little difficult to make themselves completely comfortable, no longer sleeping inside of a barn, filled with straw, and cuddling next to their parents, and the scents all around completely different than at the farm. Hector felt the same way, also being used to sleeping in the dog barn, and although he felt lonely and cold without Chloe or his parents sleeping next to him, keeping him warm in their nest, he certainly slept by himself on the opposite side of the kennel, with a cloth of his own.

Hector had no dreams that night, just a peaceful sleep that made up for the great discomfort he felt in the kennel.


	28. Dreary Days

Hector slowly began to wake up. He twitched his legs, and yawned, but his eyes were still closed. He could feel another, bigger, cloth completely covering him up. He opened his eyes, and saw nothing but the color red.

In response, he yelped in terror as he jumped, and took off running around the kennel, the cloth not falling off, fretting that he was having that dream again. He ran into a wall of the kennel and as he hit his head on it, the impact made him fall onto his back, freeing him from the cloth.

In the kennel, as he heard his littermates laughing at him, Hector realized it was another prank. He could hear other pups around laughing, clearly hearing enough to picture the response in their mind.

"Well," Buster chuckled, "I guess you don't need these." Buster grabbed the cloths that Hector was sleeping on and dragged them away. "They're ours now."

Hector just sighed and gave a hopeless expression as he listened to the other pups laughing.

"What is going on over here?", a firm tone of a female dog lowered the volumes of the rest of them.

Hector jumped again in response, jerking his head towards the sound of the dog coming into the kennel from the little door in the back wall. A small dog that was young, but much older than the other pups around, came in and looked at Hector's littermates, who were quieting down from their laughing. She appeared to be a "lappie" dog, with a short muzzle and long fur.

"Ooh, grown-up alert," Owen smirked.

She turned to look towards Hector with a concerned expression. "What's your name, dear?"

"Hector," Hector responded with uncertainty.

She addressed his littermates. "You aren't causing any trouble for Hector, are you?", she asked in a firm tone.

Hector's littermates just turned around to not pay attention or reply.

"What happened, Hector?", she prompted.

Hector almost started to cry as he replied. "Red. I just can't stand looking at it. It's too much for me."

"Red?", she asked, confused. "Are you talking about this cloth?", she pointed out the big red cloth next to Hector.

"Please, just get it away from me!", Hector covered his eyes, upset.

Still confused, she grabbed the cloth and dragged it outside the kennel. Another dog came inside the kennel. It was a male, and appeared to be the same age as the female dog. He was much larger, though, with brown and black fur, and pointed ears.

"What's the matter, son?", he asked.

"It reminds me of too much," Hector replied.

"Oh, I see," the female dog responded, coming back inside the kennel. "Does red remind you of your parents?"

Hector looked at them with an upset expression that also looked a little dumbfounded. "The blood."

"What?", the male dog asked, perking his ears. "What are you talking about?"

"It all happened so...fast," Hector replied.

"What did?", the female dog prompted.

"Everything," Hector shook his head. "Starting from Day One."

The two dogs looked at each other with worried expressions.

"Well," the male dog sighed, "if you are having a problem with seeing a bright color, that's a very big problem, because the world outside the rural place is full of bright colors. Not just tall grass and soil and forests."

"There are red monsters," the female dog added, "red objects, red signs, and those pelts that humans wear are also often red."

"You can't be freaking out over a color," the male dog added.

"What am I supposed to do?", Hector complained, "Those memories are never going to go away. I'll be reminded of them every time that I see the color red."

"What memories, dear?", the female dog asked.

Hector replied slowly. "I had premonitions that implied that red would affect my life greatly. And it already has so far."

The male dog replied with a concerned but firm tone. "You'll just have to get used to seeing the color, son. I don't know what to tell you."

A few moments of silence went by.

"I've got an idea," the male dog stated, and took off out of the kennel.

The female dog lay down next to Hector and licked him affectionately as he wept. "Are you just feeling lonely right now? The human pups will be here again soon as usual, to play with everyone."

"I want my mommy and daddy," Hector wept.

The female dog sighed. "There, there, Hector," she replied in a comforting tone, "I left my parents long ago, probably when I was your age. But I've long forgotten that chapter of my life and I've been happy living the new ones."

"But," Hector wept, "I never even got to say goodbye...", he broke off.

The female dog didn't reply. She just gave Hector a sympathetic expression.

"Who are you, anyway?", Hector asked. "And who's he?"

The female dog almost chuckled. "I understand you miss your parents, but all the pups here call us Mom and Dad. At least at the time, we both work as foster parents for all of the pups here. Yesterday, we were someplace else, but we're back now. We teach the pups here all about what they can experience later in life. He hopes however to someday become one of those dogs that work with the humans that fight crime."

"Those humans that came to the farm," Hector said, half to himself.

"You came from a farm?", the female dog asked. "I think we heard about some place where bad humans were. 'Dad' is very interested in this crime-fighting stuff, so he found out about it."

"I don't even want to talk about it," Hector argued.

"Okay," the female dog replied with uncertainty.

"So, you two don't have names?", Hector asked.

"The humans named us," the female dog replied, "but you called your parents by their names, right?"

"Yeah," Hector replied. "The other animals do the same."

"Just call us Mom and Dad," the female dog stated. "It shouldn't be too hard, right?"

"I don't know," Hector replied with uncertainty.

The female dog sighed. "Hector, the advice that 'Dad' gives all the pups is to never look behind themselves. Only look forward."

Hector just looked at her with a confused expression.

The female dog continued. "That's what I did, and I am living a happy life. I never looked back. I've only looked ahead."

Hector still didn't reply, but jerked his head towards the sound of the male dog coming back inside the kennel. He carried something in his jaws. Hector gasped and jumped backwards as he dropped it in front of him, because it was bright red.

"Try wearing this," the male dog prompted, prodding the object.

"No way, no way that's happening," Hector stopped weeping, sounding more serious now, and walking backwards until he hit the kennel wall behind him.

"Why?", the male dog prompted.

"It's gotta be very hot to the touch," Hector complained. "It's red."

"No, look," the male dog sighed, and picked up the object with his paw, and placed it above his chest. "You just wear it like this. You won't even notice it."

"No," Hector complained. "I'm not touching that thing."

"If you wear this at all times," the male dog explained, "I'm sure you'll overcome your discomfort with red."

"It's a beacon," Hector argued, "Something's gonna happen again."

"What is?", the male dog prompted.

Hector turned around so he faced the wall, so he could not see it.

"You can't even look at it?", the male dog asked.

"I've got poor eyesight, anyway," Hector argued.

"Well, no wonder you're afraid of anything red," the female dog stated, "It all looks the same to you. A blob."

"Of blood," Hector added, half to himself. "It's all a blob of blood."

"Well, then," the male dog thought for a moment, with a tone that was a mix of uncertainty and confusion, "if you could see better, maybe these things wouldn't look like...blobs of...blood."

Hector didn't reply.

"How would we do that?", the female dog asked the male dog.

He responded, "Maybe the humans can help. Maybe they can get him one of those things that some humans wear over their eyes. I assume they aid their sight."

"Hector, you need to find a way to tell the humans that you need to see better," the female dog prompted.

"I know a way...", Hector broke off and sighed. He knew a way to communicate with the humans, but he didn't really see the point in it.

The sound of humans approaching made the male dog and female dog spin around and exit the kennel, closing the little door after. The humans appeared on the other side of the kennel, and one picked up the bowl of water inside the kennel, and went to go refill it, and another filled the food bowl with chow.

Hector's littermates quickly began to eat, but Hector didn't bother to eat with them, not caring if they were going to leave any food left for him or not. He laid back down in the back corner of the kennel, and tried ignoring the noisy pups around him as he lay there bored and not sure what to do in the meantime, before he would be let out of the kennel again. Hector's littermates were play-fighting with each other and chatting with the other pups in the adjacent kennels, but Hector wished he had something to do.

Eventually, after a long morning, Hector heard the sounds of visiting human pups. Hector and his littermates, as well as other pups from other kennels, were finally let out, to greet and play with the human pups. Hector was definitely happy to be out of the kennel, but he had no interest in playing fetch or chewing on a squeaky toy.

As the humans were all distracted by the energetic pups, Hector noticed that the nearby gate was left unlocked. He sneaked away, and managed to prod the gate open without the humans noticing, and walked in front of the house. Wondering if there would be books to read inside, he ran off into the house.

When he got inside, there was a human who didn't seem to notice Hector as he walked away as she was occupied with that sort of box Hector used before that generates marking language through buttons. He reached a staircase, and climbed up. When he was at the top, he saw that there was more than one room, and seeing a human in one of the rooms, he went in another. To Hector's luck, he spotted some big books on low shelves that he could reach. He excitedly tried pulling out one of the heavy books out. When it pounded on the floor, he opened it, and saw way more markings in it than any other books he's seen. There was a sofa in the room, and not wanting to be seen, he squeezed his way underneath it, and forcefully pulled the heavy book there. Hector realized it was much too dark to see any of the markings under there, and also having poor eyesight, he needed to find light. There was a window in the room letting sunlight in, but it was too dark underneath the sofa. One side of the sofa was almost touching the wall, so he decided to lay the book back along the wall, while he stayed underneath the sofa, and he squinted his eyes, struggling to read the book with the limited light.

Hector was able to read with no disturbances for a little over an hour, before he heard a human walk in, and hearing his name being called, he knew he was being looked for. The human spotted where he was, and she knelt down onto the floor. Hector drooped, with a disappointed expression, not wanting to go back in that kennel.

The human glanced at the book, and then back at Hector, with a dumbfounded look. She didn't appear to think much of it, and reached her right hand and arm underneath the sofa to grab him, and in response, Hector backed further away where she could not reach him. She sighed, picked up the book, and put it back where Hector found it. Hector raced out from underneath the sofa, and prodded at the books, whimpering and yipping, with a pleading expression. The human shook her head with a confused expression. Hector grabbed a smaller and lighter book and pulled it out, opened it, and ran his paws through the markings.

The human responded with saying what Hector understood as "No. No. No!" It was a calm, but firm voice. Hector was then thinking that the human must have thought he was going to rip the book with his claws, and teeth. The human snatched the book away, and picked him up. Hector protested with yips and whimpers, trying to gesture with his paws pointing back to the books, but the human ignored him as she carried him back to the kennel, remarking something to the other humans as she passed by them. She opened the kennel, and locked Hector back inside. By now, his littermates were back in the kennel again, too, and they just ignored him. Hector did not know if they had noticed he wasn't there all that time. It didn't look as though they really cared anyway, though.

Hector uneasily walked by them, and back to the back corner of the kennel, and laid down in complete disappointment and boredom. He just wanted to read! He could read a book inside of the kennel. If the humans would just give him some books to read, he wouldn't mind sitting in the kennel all day. While his littermates would probably still irritate him, he felt he was wasting his time completely away, by having nothing to read, because he had no interest in interacting with the other pups like everyone else was doing. He just laid down, stared at the wall, and thought about all of the things he remembered from the book, wishing he was still reading it. The day lasted forever, and when the next, and last, human family came later in the day, Hector didn't bother to go and greet them. He just sat and watched the visitors playing with the other pups.

Eventually, the long day had finally ended. 'Dad' and 'Mom' had said "good night" to Hector and his littermates, and told them a short story before leaving. Hector's littermates were happily huddled together, with warm cloths, on the opposite end of the kennel. Hector lay all by himself, without any cloths, feeling cold and lonely on the hard cold ground underneath him, and he also felt quite hungry since he hadn't dared to try eating with his littermates at all that day. He looked at the sky, and saw no stars. There were only large clouds, blocking the moon and its light.


End file.
